On August 28, 2025, opposition parties, including the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, raised concerns over alleged irregularities in the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise, particularly citing “statistically implausible” figures from Osun State and the South-West, as reported by Vanguard, The Guardian, and Tribune Online. INEC, however, dismissed these claims, asserting the data aligns with historical trends (Web:1, Web:2, Web:8).
Opposition Concerns: The ADC, through National Publicity Secretary Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, highlighted that Osun recorded 393,269 pre-registrations in one week (August 18–24, 2025), surpassing the 275,815 new voters added from 2019 to 2023. The South-West accounted for 67% of the 1,379,342 national pre-registrations, with Osun, Lagos, and Ogun alone contributing 54.2%, while the South-East recorded just 1,998 (Web:3, Web:6, Web:7). The ADC warned of a potential “technical glitch” or “deliberate manipulation” threatening the 2027 elections’ integrity, demanding a forensic audit and transparency on server logs (Web:4, Web:16). The PDP’s Okechukwu Osuoha echoed this, citing weak institutions enabling manipulation, while the LP’s Tony Akeni raised fears of pre-election rigging, referencing past voter roll issues (Web:4, Web:6). Atiku Abubakar, via his Media Adviser Paul Ibe, demanded an urgent probe into Osun’s figures, advocating for electoral reforms like mandatory BVAS use and electronic result transmission to restore trust (Web:5, Web:6).
INEC’s Defense: INEC’s Chief Press Secretary, Rotimi Oyekanmi, refuted claims of irregularities, noting Osun’s consistent lead in past CVR exercises, with 708,782 registrations by April 2022. He emphasized transparency, biometric verification via the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS), and weekly data releases, urging critics to verify facts from public records (Web:8, Web:9, Web:10). INEC reported 1,379,342 online pre-registrations nationwide, with Osun (393,269), Lagos (222,205), and the FCT (107,682) leading (Web:12, Web:14).
Forensic Support Offered: The Chartered Institute of Forensics and Certified Fraud Investigators of Nigeria, led by Dr. Iliyasu Gashinbaki, pledged to assist INEC with forensic tools and technology to address disparities, maintaining a non-partisan stance (Web:4). X posts from @inecnigeria (August 25, 2025) confirmed 1,379,342 pre-registrations, while @ADCBolaji (August 28, 2025) reiterated the ADC’s call for a forensic audit, citing 72% public concern over electoral integrity (NOI Polls, 2025) (Post:2, Post:7). The controversy underscores tensions over Nigeria’s electoral process ahead of 2027 (Web:6, Web:11).
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