On Tuesday, the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room protested the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) decision to reconfigure the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) used for the presidential election.
The Situation Room, a coalition of 70 Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) working in support of credible and transparent elections in the country, said in an Abuja statement that it was concerned about the preservation of data collected during the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections.
“Situation Room will like the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to clarify to the public how it intends to ensure that data collected in the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) used in the election will be preserved for use in the review and audit of the elections.
“Electoral accountability requires that information collected during elections are preserved for use in the audit and review of the election and for accountability purposes.
“In the light of the disputations that have emerged and the controversy surrounding the 2023 general elections, Situation Room is asking INEC to ensure that its records and data related to the election are held safely and securely to ensure its use for the purposes of scrutiny and accountability.
“Reports indicating that the BVAS may need to be reconfigured or even erased for the upcoming State Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections due on Saturday, 11th March 2023 is a serious cause for concern and we worry that this could further pose additional credibility questions over the integrity and conduct of the 2023 general elections”, the statement, which was signed by conveners of the CSOs, Ene Obi, Asma’u Joda and James Ugochukwu, further read.