The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has submitted the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines used in the Edo State Governorship Election to the Election Tribunal, following a legal request from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The election, conducted on September 21, 2024, saw Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) emerge victorious. However, the PDP has contested the results, citing concerns over electoral irregularities. After INEC initially declined to release the BVAS devices voluntarily, the party obtained a subpoena compelling the commission to present them as evidence before the Tribunal.

With the BVAS machines now in the Tribunal’s custody, experts are analyzing the retrieved data, particularly in relation to allegations of over-voting. Preliminary findings suggest inconsistencies between the number of accredited voters recorded by the BVAS and the final results announced in multiple polling units.

The PDP contends that votes recorded in some areas exceeded the number of accredited voters, which, if proven, could indicate electoral malpractice. The Tribunal’s review of the BVAS logs is expected to play a crucial role in determining whether the election results were accurate.

During Thursday’s hearing, a collation agent from Akoko Edo’s Ward 9 testified before the Tribunal. He acknowledged that while voting in the ward’s 13 polling units was conducted without major disruptions, the results collated at the ward level differed from those uploaded on INEC’s Result Viewing Portal (IREV).

Additionally, he alleged that an alternative set of results had been introduced at the collation center, which did not match the records from the polling units. Due to this discrepancy, he refused to endorse the ward’s final result sheet.

A second witness from Oredo Local Government Area also presented evidence, asserting that the final results declared in Ward 1 did not align with either the original polling unit results or the data available on the IREV platform.

In response to these claims, the Tribunal admitted Certified True Copies (CTCs) of electoral documents submitted by the PDP. These documents, the party argues, highlight significant disparities between the official election results and the actual polling unit records.

The inclusion of BVAS data as evidence is widely regarded as a pivotal development in the case. Since the Supreme Court has affirmed BVAS as the primary reference for voter accreditation data, legal analysts believe this strengthens the PDP’s petition, led by Asue Ighodalo.

The BVAS logs provide an auditable trail of the number of accredited voters in each polling unit, making them a crucial piece of evidence in verifying the legitimacy of the results declared by INEC. If discrepancies persist between BVAS records and the official results, it could impact the Tribunal’s final ruling.

On the other hand, the APC and Governor Monday Okpebholo’s legal team are expected to scrutinize the BVAS evidence carefully. Their defense strategy will likely focus on questioning the credibility of the PDP’s claims and ensuring that the election outcome remains valid.

As the Tribunal continues its proceedings, the case remains one of the most closely watched legal battles in recent electoral history, with significant implications for future elections and the use of BVAS technology in Nigeria.

In a revealing interview on State Affairs with Edmund Obilo, published on YouTube on Wednesday, Akande claimed that Tinubu was initially hesitant, citing financial constraints and personal doubts.

“When I met him, he said, ‘Baba, do you have money? If I had the kind of money people have to be president, I would rank with Dangote,’” Akande recalled. It was a surprising admission from a man widely regarded as one of Nigeria’s most formidable political figures.

But it wasn’t just about money. Tinubu, according to Akande, actively resisted discussions about his candidacy. “People called me and said, ‘Come, there is trouble. Anybody that talks to him about the presidency, he quarrels with them,’” Akande said. Concerned, the elder statesman traveled to Lagos for a personal intervention.

When words of encouragement failed, Akande turned to tradition. He framed Tinubu’s candidacy not as a personal ambition but as a necessary sacrifice for the Yoruba people.

“I told him, ‘We don’t want you to be president because of you. You are unimportant in this matter. But in Yoruba tradition, when you want to worship the deity, you take the fattest animal or the biggest yam to worship. Yoruba wants to be president, and you are the one we have now. It is to sacrifice you so that we can have a president, not for you to be anything.’”

The approach stunned Tinubu. “He was looking at me as if I was sick or something,” Akande recounted. But it planted a seed of possibility.

Still, Tinubu hesitated. “Baba, you now say I should run. What about this, my leg?” he asked, referring to his known health challenges. Akande was unwavering. “Go and do it. There is still time. You will heal in six months.”

Even after Tinubu finally embraced the idea of running, the road ahead was fraught with challenges. Akande claimed that the #EndSARS protests were part of a larger effort to end Tinubu’s political career.

“#EndSARS was designed to be the end of Tinubu,” he alleged. When asked who orchestrated it, he pointed fingers at the Obidient movement. “The Obidients were behind #EndSARS. It was manufactured from America and brought in just to stop him.”

Akande quickly clarified that he was not referring to Peter Obi directly, but rather to a movement that, in his view, emerged from the protests and later attempted to form a political party.

Akande also shed light on the complex political maneuvering behind Tinubu’s rise. He revealed that he played a key role in Yemi Osinbajo’s selection as vice president in 2015.

“In 2011, Tinubu was discussing with Buhari about replacing Pastor Tunde Bakare as running mate. I told Tinubu, ‘I’m going to recommend Osinbajo,’ and I did.”

However, that alliance was later tested. During the 2022 presidential primaries, Osinbajo refused to step down for Tinubu, despite efforts to prevent internal discord among Yoruba candidates.

When asked if former President Muhammadu Buhari opposed Tinubu’s candidacy, Akande dismissed the speculation. “He didn’t tell me so,” he said. “I asked him many questions, including whether he instigated Osinbajo to contest against Tinubu. He said no and explained that, in his culture, when your mentor is interested in a position, you don’t contest with him.”

Akande ended with a candid reflection on Tinubu’s evolution as a political strategist.

“He may have known a lot about the politics of Lagos and America, but he was very ignorant about the politics of Nigeria. Now that he is president, I don’t know how much he has learned.”

It’s a striking statement, suggesting that even the most powerful leaders remain, at their core, students of politics—shaped not just by their ambitions but by the forces, allies, and histories that push them forward.

A judge sentenced a powerful former US senator, Bob Menendez to 11 years in prison Wednesday, after he was convicted of corruption following the discovery of gold bars and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash at his home.

Bob Menendez, a 71-year-old Democrat from New Jersey, was convicted of federal charges of extortion, obstruction of justice and accepting bribes to perform favors for businessmen with connections to Egypt and Qatar. He said he would appeal.

“Somewhere along the way… you lost your way,” District Judge Sidney Stein said in announcing the sentence. “Working for the public good became working for your good.”

Menendez, who had served as chairman of the influential Senate Foreign Relations Committee, had vowed to appeal the verdict handed down in July 2024, and on Wednesday he asked for leniency from the judge ahead of his sentencing.

“I am going to ask you for mercy — not for me, but for Anthony,” a crying Menendez said, referring to his son who has autism.

Ahead of the sentencing, the court received letters from acquaintances of Menendez testifying to his character.

“Bob inspired many people, including me, with hope that it is possible to change the world,” said one, from author Donald Scarinci.

Menendez’s attorney Adam Fee said that “despite his decades of service, he is now known more widely as ‘gold bar Bob.’”

The counts on which Menendez was convicted after less than three days of jury deliberations included conspiracy to commit bribery and acting as a foreign agent while a public official.

– ‘Egregious abuse’ –
Menendez said outside court following his conviction last year: “I have never been anything but a patriot of my country and for my country. I have never, ever been a foreign agent.”

On Wednesday he vowed to appeal and called his prosecution a “witch hunt.”

“President (Donald) Trump is right. This process is political and it’s corrupted to the core. I hope President Trump cleans up the cesspool and restores integrity to the system,” he said.

He was not immediately taken into custody following the hearing.

In a raid on Menendez’s New Jersey home, FBI agents were said to have found nearly $500,000 in cash hidden around the house, as well as gold bars worth around $150,000 and a luxury Mercedes-Benz convertible.

His wife Nadine Menendez, to whom defense lawyers sought to shift the blame, was charged but faces trial separately as she receives treatment for breast cancer.

Menendez was convicted alongside two of the businessmen he helped — Egyptian-American Wael Hana and Fred Daibes, a real estate developer. They were both sentenced to jail terms Wednesday.

A third businessman, insurance broker Jose Uribe, pleaded guilty to bribery charges in March and assisted investigators.

Menendez is said to have interfered in the nomination of New Jersey’s prosecutor in a bid to ensure that proceedings were dropped against Daibes and Uribe.

He is also accused of accepting bribes to use his power and influence to enrich his co-conspirators and benefit the government of Egypt, including by helping Hana protect his monopoly on US exports of halal food products to the country.

Prosecutors had sought a jail term of 15 years while Menendez’s defense sought no more than eight years behind bars.

Prosecutor Danielle Sassoon said in a statement “the sentences imposed today result from an egregious abuse of power at the highest levels.”