The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has submitted the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines used in the last Edo State Governorship Election to the Governorship Election Tribunal.
The election won by the Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was held on September 21, 2024 and has been disputed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The submission of the BVAS machines on Thursday follows a subpoena obtained by the PDP after INEC initially declined to release the machines voluntarily.
The BVAS data, now before the Tribunal, is expected to provide crucial insight into the accreditation process, with preliminary indications suggesting discrepancies between voter accreditation figures and final results declared in multiple polling units.
The PDP has consistently maintained that the election was marred by over-voting, arguing that results announced by INEC exceeded the number of accredited voters in several locations.
During Thursday’s proceedings, a PDP witness from Akoko Edo, who served as the Ward 9 collation agent, testified that while elections were conducted properly in the 13 polling units within the ward, the results collated at the ward level differed from those uploaded on INEC’s Result Viewing Portal (IREV).
He stated that a duplicate set of results was presented at the ward collation centre, which did not tally with polling unit records, prompting his refusal to sign the ward collation result sheet.
In a separate testimony, a collation agent from Oredo Local Government presented evidence that the final results declared by INEC in Ward 1 did not correspond with any polling unit results or the data uploaded on IREV.
The Tribunal accepted the certified true copies (CTCs) of exhibits submitted by the PDP, which highlight alleged inconsistencies between declared results and polling unit figures.
The admission of BVAS machines into evidence represents a pivotal moment in the petition, as the data contained within the devices will be instrumental in determining the validity of the election results.
BVAS records provide a verifiable log of accredited voters at each polling unit, serving as a key benchmark against which declared results can be assessed.
Legal analysts suggest that the admittance of the BVAS machines into evidence by the Tribunal represents a significant boost to Asue Ighodalo’s petition, as the Supreme Court has ruled that the BVAS machine is the primary source of accreditation data.
The Tribunal’s review of BVAS data will be critical in evaluating the PDP’s claims of over-voting and determining whether discrepancies in accreditation figures substantiate the party’s petition.
Meanwhile, the APC and Governor Okpebholo’s legal team are expected to scrutinise the evidence closely as they prepare their defence.
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