By Nchetachi Chukwuajah
The admission of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of unauthorised access to its Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) database and subsequent publication of the details of Nollywood actor and House of Representatives aspirant, Emeka Ike, has raised concerns about data protection among Nigerians.
Some Nigerians, who took to several social media platforms to express their concerns, noted that such a level of an individual’s data breach erodes public trust in the commission and raises questions about the credibility of the electoral process.
Recall that Emeka Ike, a native of Imo State, contested the House of Representatives seat for the AMAC/Bwari Federal Constituency in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) under the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) and lost.
In what appears to be a taunt over the loss, Lere Olayinka, media aide to the Minister of the FCT, Nyesom Wike, shared screenshots containing the personal data of Emeka Ike from INEC’s administrative webpage.
Some of the personal information in the screenshots included Ike’s application number, registration centre, Voter Identification Number, profile picture, name, and date of application.
On his X handle on Saturday, May 30, Olayinka wrote that Ike was formerly a registered voter in Imo State before transferring his registration to the FCT.
He wrote, “Emeka Ike was a registered voter in Imo State. He only transferred his INEC Registration to the FCT on May 15, 2026 (15 days ago).
“And he wants to contest for House of Reps in Abuja! Someone who has never voted in the FCT o. What happened to his Imo State? This Obidient people enh!!!”
The two images Olayinka attached to the post raised concerns among many users as they contained details obtained from INEC’s administrative login portal.
In reaction, Emeka Ike threatened to take legal action against Olayinka, describing the action as shocking and the height of political rascality.
“It’s quite shocking, extreme, and it is the height of political rascality for a government officer to access a citizen’s information from the INEC cyber. It tells you a lot; it shows how much impunity we have flying around, and people have access to things they shouldn’t be having access to, and that’s quite deplorable. I see that as a huge insult and slap on every political party and every Nigerian.
“He is telling every Nigerian that whoever you are, I can pull your information from anywhere and I can do what I want, and that rascality needs to be stopped,” he said.
Following the concerns raised, INEC said it had begun a probe into the matter, admitting that the actor’s voter information was accessed through the user account of one of its officials.
The commission also disclosed that the Department of State Services (DSS) has also commenced an independent investigation into the matter, assuring that the retrieval of a specific voter record does not indicate any “compromise of the Commission’s broader voter registration infrastructure or the personal data of over 90 million registered voters.”
In reaction to the issue across several social media platforms, some Nigerians called for immediate investigation into the matter and appropriate sanctions to deter future recurrence.
@OlufemiAdesany7 tweeted, “How long will it take you to investigate just this simple case? Na everything una go dey take weeks and months to investigate?”
@ANewNaija wrote, “This shouldn’t be difficult at all. Write the SSS to pick up Lere Olayinka and let him disclose how he got access to such information. It’s barely eight months to elections and public trust has been totally eroded in this commission that is as useless as the ‘P’ in Psychology. Utterly shameful.”
@shocking_prof_ added, “Investigation that will remain ongoing till after the next general elections? Nigerians are tired of being told investigation is ongoing; it has become a cliché, that’s how you guys end conversations demanding accountability from the commission.”
For Nigerians on social media, the issue raises concerns about data protection, even as the urged the government to establish stronger data protection and privacy systems.”
@TheFishProf tweeted, “If political elites can easily compromise the INEC database to steal your voice, voting alone will never be enough to save us. The system isn’t broken; it was built this way to lock you out. When the ballot box is compromised, REVOLUTION becomes the only way to reclaim our destiny.”
@Ken_Ibeawuchi wrote, “Dear @inecnigeria, can you assure that no similar event has occurred and will occur in future? Can you ascertain the reason why this individual’s details were singled out for review?
