ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has warned that the unauthorised disclosure of voter information from the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) database poses a serious threat to the credibility of the 2027 general elections.
Atiku, in a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, said the incident had exposed the vulnerability of Nigeria’s electoral institutions to potential political manipulation even before election campaigns had properly begun.
Reacting to INEC’s explanation of the incident, the former vice president said the commission’s attempt to reassure Nigerians that no external hacking occurred raised even more troubling questions because it simultaneously admitted that sensitive voter information had been accessed through official credentials and released without authorisation.
“INEC’s statement has moved this issue beyond conjecture. The Commission has now confirmed that voter information was accessed through credentials assigned to personnel participating in the ongoing CVR exercise and that such information was released without authority. That admission alone should concern every Nigerian,” he said.
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According to Atiku, the absence of an external cyberattack does not diminish the seriousness of the incident. Rather, he argued, it raises concerns about internal controls, institutional safeguards and the possibility of deliberate political interference.
“What makes this entire episode impossible to ignore is that the information in question did not emerge from a whistleblower, an investigative journalist, or an anti-corruption agency. It was publicly released by Mr. Lere Olayinka, spokesman to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
“Only days before this controversy erupted, Minister Wike publicly declared with remarkable certainty that Atiku Abubakar would not secure up to ten percent of the votes in Rivers State in the 2027 presidential election. It was an astonishing claim. Not because politicians are forbidden from making predictions, but because of the confidence, precision, and finality with which it was delivered,” he stated.
Atiku questioned whether the confidence expressed by the minister was merely political rhetoric or evidence that certain political actors believed they enjoyed privileged access to institutions that ought to remain politically neutral.
He said the incident had become a direct test of the independence of Nigeria’s electoral institutions and called for full disclosure of how the voter information was obtained and circulated.
According to him, Nigerians deserve to know who accessed the information, who requested it, who received it and how it left the custody of INEC.
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“The credibility of the 2027 election will not be determined solely on election day. It is being shaped right now by the willingness of institutions to demonstrate transparency, accountability, and independence. Nigeria cannot afford a situation where confidence in electoral institutions is weakened before campaigns have even properly commenced,” he said.
While welcoming INEC’s disclosure that it had identified the specific user account involved and questioned the relevant personnel, Atiku maintained that identifying a user account was only the beginning of the process.
He also welcomed the Department of State Services’ (DSS) independent investigation into the matter but stressed that Nigerians would expect the probe to meet the highest standards of transparency and accountability.
The former vice president insisted that restoring public confidence in the electoral process requires a thorough investigation and full disclosure of the circumstances surrounding the unauthorised release of the voter information.