Mock Accreditation: INEC Chairman Explains Reason For BVAS Glitches As Accord Party Expresses Concern

• Commission Increases Number Of BVAS For Poll

The Independent National Electoral Commission has traced the malfunction recorded during Saturday’s mock accreditation in Osun State to old Permanent Voter Cards, saying the issue has been fixed.

The chairman of INEC, Professor Joash Amupitan SAN, disclosed this while addressing journalists at the INEC headquarters in Osogbo.

Amupitan, who said he went out with his team for a field-level inspection, alerted the Information Communication Technology department immediately the glitches were observed, adding that the issue was resolved within an hour.

The INEC chairman, who noted that the mock exercise was to test the functionality of the modern voter certification system in place for the election, said the glitches had to do with those with old Permanent Voter Cards.

He said, “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.
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. And the minute we were alerted, the ICT had to work on it, and within an hour it was resolved. We didn’t have to wait until the day of the election.

“The only problem we have is what it has to do with those old cards that are almost defaced. Because some of these cards were issued since 2011. Recall that the Commission wanted to do the validation. That was one of the reasons.”

Amupitan said the mock exercise was necessary to identify problems ahead of the August 15 governorship election, noting that had it occurred on election day, it would have been misconstrued as a BVAS failure.

“We want to identify the problem ahead of time. If this had occurred on an election day, we know how some people would have carried it that BVAS has failed to work. But we have the capacity to meet every challenge,” he added.

Speaking further, the INEC chairman said the commission has increased the
total number of Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for the election from 4,427 to 5,130.

“Based on some concerns and complaints expressed by some political parties on the numbers of BVAS deployed to the states, we have increased the total number of BVAS for the election from 4,427 to 5,130, so as to serve split polling units in Ife East, Irewole, Egbedore, Ede North and Osogbo,” Amupitan said.

He also noted that the number of backup machines has been increased from 664 to 1,328 for quick intervention in case of any malfunction.

Meanwhile, the Osun State chapter of the Accord Party has expressed apprehension over the glitches recorded during the mock accreditation and called on INEC to urgently review the configuration of the BVAS machines.

In a statement signed by the state chairman, Pastor Victor Akande, the party said the errors observed appear fundamental and urged the commission to conduct a comprehensive technical audit with direct involvement of stakeholders.

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“We call for a comprehensive technical audit with direct involvement of relevant stakeholders. The errors manifested today appear fundamental, and we seek that the commission holistically address the technical challenges.

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

Accord said it has confidence in INEC’s capacity to deliver as it did in 2022, but proposed the setting up of a technical committee of contesting political parties to support the commission in the corrective process.

“While we have confidence in the capacity of the commission to deliver as it did in 2022, we appeal for an integrated approach to the BVAS question. We should not allow rumours of compromised BVAS machines to gain ground, hence the need for verifiable corrective measures.

“We propose a technical committee of contesting political parties to support INEC in the corrective process. This will deepen stakeholders’ confidence ahead of August 15th,” the party noted.