BVAS Data Is Intact-INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has stated that the Bi-modal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, data used for the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly election is intact. 

“We have already stated in our affidavit that no information in the BVAS will be lost as we will transfer all the data in the BVAS to our backend server.

“We need the BVAS configured. So, granting this application will be a clog in the process and may delay the conduct of the elections”, INEC’s lawyer, Inuwa, SAN, pleaded.

INEC made the declaration at the Court of Appeal on Tuesday through its lead counsel, Tanimu Inuwa, SAN. The counsel who was opposing an application filed by the Labour Party Presidential candidate, Peter Obi, on BVAS deployed during the poll, however, averred that granting Obi's application would delay the conduct of Saturday's governorship and houses of assembly elections. 

According to Inuwa, the number of BVAS required to be examined is too many, a reason why it will be difficult for INEC to present all for examination within the short between they have to be reconfigured for Saturday's Governorship and House of Assembly elections. 

“Each polling unit has its own particular BVAS machine which we need to configure for the forthcoming elections. It will be very difficult for us, within the period, to reconfigure the 176,000 BVAS.

But Dr Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, lead counsel for Obi, insisted the examining the BVAS is important, noting that the application made by his client was to the extent of enabling his legal team to extract data embedded in the BVAS as, according to him “...represent the actual results from polling units.”

According to Ikpeazu, “My lords, this is to ensure that the evidence is preserved before the BVAS are reconfigured by INEC. This is because if they are wiped out, it will affect the substance of the case.”