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The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Joash Amupitan (SAN), has attributed the technical glitches recorded during Saturday’s mock accreditation exercise in Osun State to compatibility issues involving old Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), assuring voters that the problem was identified and resolved within an hour.

Speaking with journalists at the INEC headquarters in Osogbo after monitoring the exercise, Amupitan explained that the mock accreditation successfully achieved its objective of exposing potential technical challenges ahead of the August 15 governorship election.

According to him, the commission’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) team promptly intervened after reports emerged that some older PVCs were not being recognised by the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).

“We initially had a minor hitch, and I call it minor because if it happened during the election, it would have been a major hitch,” Amupitan said.

“We discovered that most of the old cards were not being accredited. This was a result of what we call a compatibility score, or a similarity score. The moment we were alerted, our ICT team worked on it and within one hour the issue was resolved. We didn’t have to wait until election day.”

He explained that some PVCs issued as far back as 2011 had become worn out or defaced, making them difficult for the machines to read, adding that the commission had earlier considered validating such cards for that reason.

The INEC chairman stressed that the mock exercise was organised to detect and resolve any technical issues before the governorship election, noting that a similar incident on election day could easily have been misinterpreted as a complete failure of the BVAS.

“We want to identify problems ahead of time. If this had happened on election day, many people would have concluded that BVAS had failed. But we have the capacity to overcome every challenge,” he added.

Amupitan also announced that the commission had increased the number of BVAS machines for the election from 4,427 to 5,130 following concerns raised by political parties over deployment.

According to him, the additional machines will cater for split polling units in Ife East, Irewole, Egbedore, Ede North and Osogbo Local Government Areas.

He further disclosed that the number of backup BVAS machines had been doubled from 664 to 1,328 to ensure prompt replacement of any faulty device during the election.

Meanwhile, the Osun State chapter of the Accord Party expressed concern over the glitches recorded during the mock accreditation, urging INEC to carry out a comprehensive technical audit of the BVAS configuration before the election.

In a statement signed by its chairman, Pastor Victor Akande, the party described the observed errors as fundamental and called for direct involvement of political stakeholders in resolving the identified challenges.

“With less than two weeks until election day, INEC must demonstrate genuine readiness for reliable, fast and transparent technological applications in the electoral process,” the statement read.

While expressing confidence in the commission’s ability to conduct a credible election as it did in 2022, the party proposed the establishment of a technical committee comprising representatives of all contesting political parties to support INEC in the corrective process.

According to the party, such collaboration would strengthen public confidence and prevent speculation over the integrity of the BVAS.

Similarly, a civil society organisation, the Coalition of Concerned Nigeria Citizens (CCNC), called on INEC to provide a detailed explanation of the technical problems allegedly experienced during the exercise.

In a statement signed by its spokesperson, Comrade Raufu Sodiq, popularly known as “Oluomo Success,” the coalition alleged that several BVAS machines failed to recognise fingerprints, facial features and PVCs shortly after accreditation commenced in some polling units.

The group described the development as disturbing, arguing that a mock accreditation exercise should ordinarily strengthen public confidence in the electoral process rather than raise fresh concerns about the commission’s preparedness.

CCNC maintained that voter accreditation remains the foundation of every credible election because it determines voter eligibility and safeguards the integrity of the electoral process.

The coalition therefore urged the Osun Resident Electoral Commissioner and the national leadership of INEC to publicly explain whether the reported glitches were caused by software, hardware or configuration issues, disclose contingency plans for the state’s 3,763 polling units, replace any defective BVAS machines and consider conducting another mock accreditation exercise before the August 15 governorship election.

“We believe in strong democratic institutions and do not want to see INEC fail. However, public confidence must be built on competence, transparency and accountability. The people of Osun deserve an election where every eligible voter can vote without avoidable technological failures,” the coalition stated.

INEC conducted the statewide mock accreditation exercise on Saturday to test the functionality of the BVAS and other electoral processes ahead of the August 15 Osun State governorship election.

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Dangote Refinery-backed MRS filling stations and other filling stations across Nigeria have reduced their petrol pump prices.

A market survey by DAILY POST on Saturday showed that MRS filling stations in Abuja have reduced their petrol pump price to N1,265 per litre from N1,305 per litre.

This is the case at MRS filling stations in Kubwa and along the Lugbe Expressway in Abuja.

This means that MRS filling stations have reduced their petrol pump price by N40 per litre.

Similarly, AA Rano filling stations in Abuja reduced their petrol pump price by N30, bringing it down to N1,300 per litre.

The latest price adjustments have brought petrol retail prices to N1,265 and N1,300 per litre, down from N1,305 and N1,330 per litre, respectively. This comes after nearly two weeks of fuel price hikes amid crude oil price volatility.

The development comes as Dangote Refinery recently announced the free distribution of its petrol across at least five states, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), at a gantry price of N1,215 per litre, as Brent and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude traded at about $84 and $87 per barrel, respectively, over the weekend.

DAILY POST reports that depot owners are dispensing petrol at between N1,217 and N1,222 per litre at Pinnacle, Emedab, NIPCO and Sigmund depots.

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The Lagos State Police Command has commenced an investigation into a viral video showing the alleged assault of a gold seller by some policemen in the Festac area of Lagos.

The command disclosed this in a statement posted on its official X handle on Saturday, saying the officers captured in the video had been identified as personnel attached to Area E Command.

The incident, which reportedly occurred on Friday, gained widespread attention on Saturday after the victim shared videos alleging that he was assaulted by the officers while delivering a gold necklace to a customer.

In the videos, the man claimed he was stopped and searched by the officers, who allegedly found no incriminating item on him but questioned a digital scale he said he used for weighing gold.

According to him, the officers accused him of using the scale to weigh cannabis and ordered him to accompany them to the police station.

He alleged that he refused because he had committed no offence and became suspicious as the officers were not properly dressed in police uniforms while the vehicle they arrived in had no registration number.

The man further alleged that the officers dragged him in an attempt to force him into the vehicle, hit him on the head with a gun and physically assaulted him.

The footage showed a brief outdoor confrontation near a red minibus before cutting to the man, who displayed an injury near his eye and a gold necklace he said he was delivering at the time of the incident.

A follow-up video also surfaced online in which the man alleged that one of the officers instructed his colleagues to open fire before they fled the scene.

Reacting to the videos, the Lagos State Police Command said the officers involved had been identified and summoned for investigation.

“The Lagos State Police Command has seen the video and has commenced an investigation into the incident.

“The officers involved have been identified as personnel attached to Area E Command. The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, CP Tijani Fatai, has directed the Area Commander to immediately produce the officers at the Command Headquarters for further investigation and appropriate action.

“The individual featured in the video is kindly urged to contact the Command’s Complaint Response Unit on 09111111150 or 09111111151 to assist with the ongoing investigation,” the statement read.