POLITICAL POLITICS

Yiaga Africa: INEC Earns Pass Mark in Osun Election

by admin on | 2026-08-18 11:23:19

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Yiaga Africa: INEC Earns Pass Mark in Osun Election

By Ahmad Sirajo Makama

Yiaga Africa has commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies for the largely orderly conduct of the 2026 Osun State governorship election, saying the exercise demonstrated improvements in electoral logistics, technology and results management.

The civil society organisation assessed the election on Sunday at a press briefing held at Adolak Event Centre, Osogbo, where it presented its Process and Results Verification for Transparency (PRVT) statement on the election.

Yiaga Africa said its assessment was based on reports from 289 of the 300 sampled polling units, representing 96 per cent coverage. It deployed 300 observers, 32 mobile observers and 30 Local Government Area results collation observers across the state.

The organisation described the election as an important test of Nigeria’s electoral preparedness, security neutrality and public confidence, particularly as the first major governorship election to test aspects of the Electoral Act 2026 and the new regulatory framework for election administration and results management.

According to Yiaga Africa, INEC largely overcame the logistical challenges arising from the last-minute court-ordered inclusion of the Social Democratic Party, which required the commission to reprint ballot papers and result sheets shortly before the election.

It reported that accreditation and voting had commenced in 48 per cent of the polling units by 8:30 a.m., rising to 96 per cent by 9:30 a.m.

The organisation said the performance compared favourably with its observation during the 2022 Osun governorship election, when accreditation and voting had commenced in 41 per cent of polling units by 8:30 a.m. and 96 per cent by 9:30 a.m.

BVAS, Downloadable PVCs Record Implementation Gaps

On the deployment of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), Yiaga Africa said the technology functioned properly in 80 per cent of the polling units observed.

It, however, reported that BVAS malfunctioned in 20 per cent of the sampled polling units, although the devices were subsequently fixed.

The organisation said the widespread technological failures feared following problems encountered during the mock accreditation did not occur on a scale capable of undermining the election.

It nevertheless identified cases where elderly voters experienced difficulties with biometric and facial recognition.

Yiaga Africa also observed the use of downloadable Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), a new provision under the Electoral Act 2026.

According to the report, voters presented downloadable copies of their PVCs for accreditation in 23 per cent of the polling units observed.

While most voters presenting downloadable PVCs were successfully accredited, observers reported that some voters were denied accreditation in seven per cent of the polling units.

The organisation also reported that in 11 per cent of the polling units, some voters whose PVCs had been successfully verified were denied accreditation because the BVAS could not authenticate their fingerprints or facial biometrics.

Counting Process Largely Transparent

Yiaga Africa said the counting process was largely transparent, with polling officials showing everyone present how ballot papers were marked in 99 per cent of the polling units observed.

It said official results were publicly displayed in 91 per cent of polling units, while presiding officers used BVAS to scan and transmit Form EC8A results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) in 85 per cent of polling units.

It further reported that results from validated Form EC8A were transferred to the electronic EC8A on the BVAS in 87 per cent of polling units.

Yiaga Africa Verifies INEC Results

On the final results, Yiaga Africa said its statistical analysis showed that the official figures announced by INEC fell within its estimated ranges.

The organisation estimated that the Accord Party would secure between 50.3 and 54.0 per cent of the votes, while the African Democratic Congress (ADC) was projected to receive between 1.4 and 2.1 per cent.

For the All Progressives Congress (APC), Yiaga Africa’s estimate placed its vote share between 43.0 and 46.8 per cent.

INEC’s official results gave Accord 51.9 per cent, ADC 1.7 per cent and APC 45.2 per cent.

Yiaga Africa said the consistency between its independent estimates and INEC’s official results indicated that the figures announced by the electoral commission reflected the ballots counted at polling units.

It, however, stressed that the finding specifically addressed the accuracy of results tabulation and did not erase concerns about voter inducement and vote buying.

The organisation also estimated voter turnout at between 42.5 and 44.8 per cent, compared with INEC’s official turnout figure of 43 per cent.

IReV Strengthens Results Transparency

Yiaga Africa described IReV as an important tool for strengthening transparency in Nigeria’s election results management.

It said electronic transmission and publication of polling-unit results provided citizens with an additional safeguard against manipulation and allowed independent scrutiny of the results process.

However, it raised concerns over a prolonged interruption in the uploading of results.

According to the organisation, uploads stalled at 3,292 polling-unit results between 8:48 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., leaving 471 outstanding results before transmission resumed at approximately 11:50 p.m.

Yiaga Africa called on INEC to provide a clear explanation for the delay, stressing that sustained public confidence in IReV requires timely and complete uploads, as well as proactive communication whenever technical disruptions occur.

Security Agencies Commended

The organisation also commended the generally professional conduct of security personnel during the election.

It said the conduct was significant against the backdrop of pre-election violence, inflammatory rhetoric and concerns over the neutrality of security agencies.

Yiaga Africa, however, urged security agencies to sustain the standard and strengthen enforcement against vote buying, intimidation and electoral violence.

It noted that security neutrality must be consistent across elections, irrespective of the political party controlling the state or federal government.

Critical Incidents Recorded

Despite its generally positive assessment, Yiaga Africa documented several critical incidents.

It reported an incident at Polling Unit 4, Ada II, Ward 8, Boripe Local Government Area, where voters were showing party representatives how they marked their ballots.

At another polling unit in Boripe, supporters of Accord and APC reportedly clashed, forcing police officers to intervene and escort an INEC official and ballot box safely from the polling unit.

The organisation also reported a fight at Polling Unit 16, Ward 3, Boripe, after three unidentified men began photographing election materials. The men were later identified as foreign observers.

In Osogbo Local Government Area, Ward 10, Polling Unit 1, the voter register was initially mixed up with materials belonging to another polling unit. Although the problem was subsequently resolved, the incident delayed accreditation and voting until after 11:00 a.m.

Yiaga Africa Commends Osun Voters

Yiaga Africa said the resilience of Osun voters was one of the significant achievements of the election.

It said voters turned out despite concerns arising from attacks on PVC collection centres, politically linked violence, contestation over motor parks and inflammatory rhetoric during the campaign period.

The organisation said the 43 per cent turnout should not be interpreted simply as voter apathy, but also as evidence of citizens who were willing to participate despite apprehension.

It further commended voters who remained at polling units to witness the sorting, counting and announcement of results, as well as those who followed the results to ward and Local Government Area collation centres.

Yiaga Africa said such citizen vigilance remained one of the strongest deterrents to manipulation, while stressing that citizens should not have to personally guard electoral institutions to ensure the integrity of elections.