Polls: INEC Blasts Tinubu Over Comment On E-transmission

 

The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu has been lambasted by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

 

This comes after Tinubu expressed doubts over the credibility of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System and Results Viewing Portal which will be deployed for the 2023 election.

 

The commission expressed shock that the APC candidate could question the efficiency of the technology which had been used in several polls, including the off-season governorship elections in Ekiti, Osun, and Anambra states.

 

The former Lagos State governor had on Monday at the Chatham House in London, United Kingdom, said the electoral body had yet to assure Nigerians of the workability of the BVAS and e-transmission of poll results.

 

He spoke weeks after the APC National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, and the National Organising Secretary, Suleiman Argungu, expressed concerns over the planned deployment of BVAS for next year’s general polls.

 

Speaking at Chatham House, Tinubu said, “We are still building confidence in our democratic and voting system. INEC is yet to assure us (that) during this election that electronic transmission, the technology being used for accreditation and the total vote count, is reliable, dependable and assuring in our democratic process before we introduce a complicated element of ballot counting.”

 

But responding to Tinubu’s uncertainty, the Chief Press Secretary to the Chairman of INEC, Mr Rotimi Oyekanmi, pointed out that the commission has been talking about the features, strengths and advantages of BVAS since 2020.

 

Oyekanmi spoke in response to inquiries by The PUNCH regarding the APC standard bearer’s comment on the credibility of BVAS and the e-transmission of results.

 

He stated, ‘’The Independent National Electoral Commission has been talking about the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, its features, strengths and advantages since 2020 when it was introduced to replace our beloved Smart Card Reader.

In response to mischief-makers who circulated rumours that the commission had dumped the BVAS, Oyekanmi explained that the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has reiterated severally that there is no going back on the deployment of BVAS for the 2023 general election.

‘’Therefore, if at this moment in 2022, we still have a presidential candidate of one of the 18 registered political parties, saying he needs assurances on the BVAS or he doesn’t know or appreciate its relevance to the 2023 general election, then something is terribly wrong somewhere,’’ he stated.

 

But the APC defended the reservations expressed by Adamu and Tinubu on the BVAS, stating that their statements were probably misconstrued.

 

The APC Publicity Director, Bala Ibrahim, stressed that both men were merely striving to ensure INEC is 100 per cent certain about its readiness for the election.

 

Ibrahim said, “I think we are misinterpreting or refusing to understand the broader meaning of concerns in this context. The concern raised by both the party chairman and presidential candidate is that justice should not just be done but be seen to be done holistically.

When asked if the party was apprehensive that the use of the technology might affect its chances in the polls, the director declared that the party has nothing to fear.

 

This is even as he reiterated that they have the confidence that the commission can successfully conduct the polls if the right things are done.

 

“No, we are not intimidated. In fact, our imminent victory is more pronounced with what is happening now. If you look at the ongoing rancour, chaos and divisive situation in the camp of the opposition PDP, you will discover that our chances are getting brighter every day,’’ he stated.

 

Speaking further, Ibrahim said, “The indices have also indicated that the APC is coasting home to victory and it is certainly going to be an ‘Hallelujah’ at the end of the day. I think we should have confidence in INEC. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t tell the commission to be on its feet. On its part, INEC has assured us that everything is on course and everything has been done to ensure the election will be successful.

Ibrahim’s position was echoed by the Director of Media and Publicity for the Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council, Bayo Onanuga, who said the party leadership and APC candidate simply wanted the electoral body to get its acts together.

 

The former boss of the News Agency of Nigeria was also positive that his principal would beat the opposition candidates by a landslide.

 

He said, “What Adamu and Tinubu are trying to tell INEC is to get its acts together. They are not saying anything more than that. Of course, they are not against BVAS. Tinubu as a candidate, even when he was in the opposition, has been at the forefront of using technology to campaign for the election. So he cannot at this time be saying that he is not in support of BVAS.

On the biggest fear of the APC ahead of the polls, Onanuga maintained that if the exercise was devoid of mischief or rigging, the ruling party would win.

 

“Just some months ago, some people told Peter Obi that they could hack the INEC portal when he went on a tour. Once everybody allows the process to go on seamlessly, we don’t have any fear about the 2023 election. We are prepared and believe that with the Almighty God on our side, we are going to win massively,” he stated.