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Osun 2026: INEC configures 4,427 BVAS, dismisses stolen PVC fears
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The Independent National Electoral Commission says a total of 4,427 Bimodal Voter Accreditation System devices have been configured for the Osun State governorship election, including 664 backup units, which could cater for any incident before and during the election.
The commission has also established 97 Super Registration Area Centres and 105 Registration Area Centres across all the local government areas in the state, which would be fully activated the night before election day.
Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Mr Dayo Oketola, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday in Abuja.
The commission has fixed August 15 for the state governorship election, with the incumbent governor, Ademola Adeleke, contesting on the ticket of Accord against Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress, Najeem Salaam of the African Democratic Congress, among others.
Ahead of the election, there has been reported violence in some areas in the state, with the attack on one of the INEC Permanent Voter Card collection centres.
NAN reports that some suspected hoodlums on Sunday stormed an INEC PVC collection centre located at Oyinlola DC School, Ward 2, Okuku, attacking staff members on duty and carting away electoral materials, including BVAS devices and PVCs.
The INEC chairman’s spokesman, however, said the development would not deter the commission from conducting a free, fair and credible governorship election in the state.
He described the stealing of PVCs as an exercise in futility, given the strict biometric verification required by BVAS technology.
“Nobody can use another person’s PVC to vote in an election in Nigeria again. The era of ghost voters is gone. With BVAS, you must tender your PVC and undergo biometric authentication.
“The technology has been tightened in such a manner that nobody can use another person’s identity to vote any longer in Nigeria.
“That has been proven in previous elections, particularly those that were conducted under the leadership of Prof Amupitan,” Oketola said.
Speaking further, Oketola said, “Whatever was carted away will be replaced. Out of the 4,427 BVAS, we have 664 prepared as backups. There is no way whatever happened can disrupt our plans for the election,” he assured.
He told NAN that the incident had been formally reported to the police, adding that an investigation had commenced.
“The Osun incident has been reported to the police. As we speak, it is already public knowledge that the police have started an investigation,” Oketola said.
He expressed confidence that the police would apprehend the suspects and recover the stolen commission assets.
“As a commission, we trust that the police will be diligent in their investigation, track those suspects, get them arrested and ensure they face the wrath of the law.
“We also trust that they’ll be able to recover our devices, including the BVAS that were reportedly carted away,” he added.
Oketola maintained that despite the attack, INEC’s operational preparations for the upcoming election remained firmly on track.
“It is a matter already under investigation; I cannot actually comment too much on it.
“But I know that it cannot distract INEC from carrying out the activities preceding the Osun governorship election.
“INEC cannot be distracted. We will conduct a free and fair election in Osun. That incident cannot distract us.
“The election will go on as planned, and we expect it to be free, fair and credible at the end of the day,” he said.
He disclosed that, as part of preparations, the commission was embarking on a pre-assessment tour of the state to evaluate operational readiness and engage key local stakeholders.
He assured registered Nigerians that necessary administrative measures would also be taken by the commission to ensure that no voter would be disenfranchised in the state as a result of the incident.
“Once a voter’s name is already on the voters’ register, and somehow, your PVC happens to be among those that have been reportedly stolen, I want to believe you can’t be disenfranchised from exercising your right or participating in the election, come Aug. 15.
“Whatever the commission will do to solve that problem will be done. I know the commission will leave no stone unturned to ensure that no registered voter in Osun is disenfranchised on the election day,” he said.
Oketola, while assuring voters of their safety during the election, called on all stakeholders to collaborate with the commission to protect the nation’s electoral assets and ensure a peaceful voting environment.
“While the security agencies will provide adequate security to protect people and election materials, we also need all key stakeholders to be vigilant.
“The people, community leaders and traditional rulers, security agencies, religious organisations, political actors; all of us must work together to ensure that the Osun election is not just successful, but conducted in an atmosphere that gives people the confidence to come out and exercise their franchise,” Oketola said.
The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has intercepted two persons in Adamawa State with ₦34 million in cash, with the suspects allegedly linked to a kidnapping syndicate.
The suspects were intercepted with the cash during an operation in the state.
The Comptroller of Immigration Service, Sani Sule-Jega, disclosed this at a media briefing in Yola, the Adamawa State capital.
According to him, preliminary investigations showed that the suspects claimed the money was intended to pay ransom for their abducted brother.
In a separate operation, the Adamawa State Command of the NIS also intercepted 17 irregular migrants at Rumde Baruw in Yola North Local Government Area of the state.
The undocumented migrants were intercepted at a private three-bedroom residence during an operation by officers of the command.
Sule-Jega said preliminary profiling showed that 13 of the migrants were Cameroonian nationals, comprising eight males and five females, while the remaining four were Chadian nationals, all males.
The Comptroller noted a shift in the accommodation pattern of undocumented migrants, particularly their increasing use of private and unregistered apartments instead of conventional lodging facilities such as hotels.
He said the service was intensifying surveillance and intelligence-led operations to identify and address emerging patterns of irregular migration in the state.
Sule-Jega reiterated the command’s commitment to safeguarding Nigeria’s territorial integrity, improving migration management and strengthening border security.
He urged members of the public to remain vigilant and provide credible information that could assist security agencies in maintaining peace and security across the state.
The suspects and recovered cash have been taken into custody for further investigation and necessary action in accordance with established procedures and applicable laws.
The Comptroller General of Immigration has directed that the suspects and exhibits be handed over to the Nigeria Police Force for further investigation.
A popular Kano social media political commentator, Ibrahim Khalil Dan Shagamu, has been reportedly killed in his apartment in Kano State.
Dan Shagamu, who operated under the brand Dan-shagamu International, was known for his social media videos and commentary on political, religious and community issues.
Amnesty International Nigeria confirmed his killing in a statement posted on X on Wednesday, saying his body was found in a pool of blood at his home.
“Amnesty International strongly condemns the killing of a social media political commentator Ibrahim Khalil Dan Shagamu whose body was found today in a pool of blood at his home in Kano,” the organisation said.
“He was brutally slaughtered after being overpowered by his killers.”
Details surrounding the circumstances of the killing were still unclear as of Wednesday.Amnesty International called on the Nigerian authorities to investigate the killing and ensure that those responsible are brought to justice.
“The Nigerian authorities must investigate this incident and ensure that those suspected of responsibility are brought to justice,” it said, while tagging the Nigeria Police Force.
The rights organisation also expressed concern over what it described as increasing politically related threats and intimidation ahead of the elections.
“As the elections approach, we continue to receive disturbing reports of politically related threats to life and intimidation,” Amnesty said.
News of Dan Shagamu’s death has sparked an outpouring of grief among his followers and residents, with many taking to social media to express shock and offer prayers for his soul.
Reports circulating on social media said Dan Shagamu was killed in a gruesome manner, with some describing the attack as “yankan rago”, a Hausa expression referring to throat-slitting.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio has petitioned the Department of State Services (DSS) to investigate a viral social media statement allegedly attributed to him in which he purportedly warned Northerners that they would “suffer the most” if President Bola Tinubu loses the 2027 election.
The statement, circulated on Facebook and other digital platforms alongside Akpabio’s photograph and official designation, has sparked controversy, prompting the Senate President to formally deny making the remark.
In a petition signed by his Chief of Staff, Chinedu Akubueze, Akpabio described the publication as “manifestly false, inflammatory and dangerously divisive,” urging the DSS to investigate its origin and distribution.
The viral graphic attributes the following statement to Akpabio: “Northerners, you will be the ones to suffer the most, if you allow Tinubu to lose the election.”
Akpabio, however, said there is no credible evidence linking him to the statement.
According to the petition, no identifiable date, venue, speech, interview, audio or video recording, official statement or credible media report has been produced to authenticate the alleged quotation.
The Senate President alleged that the graphic was deliberately fabricated and presented as an authentic statement with the aim of misleading the public, inflaming regional sentiments and portraying him as hostile to Nigerians from the North.
Akpabio also drew the DSS’s attention to several individuals allegedly identified through a preliminary review of publicly accessible Facebook records as among the early amplifiers of the disputed material.
The petition named Abdullai Musa, who allegedly shared the graphic in a Facebook group known as “Sheik Muhammad bin Uthman Group 24,” and Uzoma Chilaka, whose Facebook post allegedly reproduced the graphic alongside commentary attributed to Boniface Uzoma Chilaka and Engineer Ibrahim Umar Ammar.
It further referenced a verified Facebook account belonging to Ibrahim Umar Ammar, which allegedly later reproduced the graphic and substantially similar commentary.
Akpabio’s office, however, stressed that the individuals mentioned in the petition should not be presumed guilty, describing them only as “material persons of interest” whose activities could assist investigators in tracing the origin and circulation of the disputed publication.
The Senate President is asking the DSS to investigate the publication records, devices, communications and provenance of the graphic in accordance with Nigerian law.
The petition comes amid heightened political activity ahead of the 2027 general elections and growing concerns over the spread of inflammatory, misleading and fabricated political content on social media.
The statement was issued by Jackson Udom, Special Assistant to the President of the Senate on Media.
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