The Nigeria Police Force has detained an electoral officer and interrogated Lere Olayinka, the media aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike. This action follows the unauthorized leak of classified voter registration information.
Operatives from the Force Intelligence Department – Intelligence Response Team (FID-IRT) conducted the questioning at the Police Headquarters in Abuja. The ongoing investigation targets alleged cyber-related offences, database misuse, and the unlawful disclosure of protected national documents.
Background of the Controversy
The controversy began when Olayinka posted screenshots on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter). The images revealed the private voter registration and transfer details of Nollywood actor and politician Emeka Ike. Ike had recently contested the House of Representatives primary ticket for the AMAC/Bwari Federal Constituency under the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and protested the outcome. Olayinka used the screenshots to question Ike's eligibility to run in the FCT, pointing out that the actor had only transferred his registration from Imo State to Abuja days prior. However, the shared images clearly showed they were captured from the restricted administrative backend of the electoral body, displaying the actor's Voter Identification Number (VIN), application number, and profile photograph.
INEC Denies Database Hack
The public disclosure sparked immediate backlash from citizens and data privacy advocates concerned about the security of the national civic database. In response, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) issued a statement signed by Sam Olumekun, National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, clarifying that its infrastructure was not compromised by external hackers. Instead, INEC attributed the incident to an insider breach. The commission explained that during the ongoing nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise, authorized registration officers are granted controlled access credentials to process transfers and updates. An internal audit trail successfully tracked the specific user account used to pull the actor's data.
Legal and Security Implications
According to police sources, the detained INEC official allegedly initiated contact with Olayinka and forwarded the administrative screenshots via a private messaging application. Following the data exposure, Emeka Ike threatened legal action against Olayinka for violating his right to privacy. The State Security Service (SSS) has also launched a parallel investigation into the matter to assess potential threats to national security infrastructure. Authorities confirmed that the probe was formally triggered by a petition filed on behalf of INEC, which alleges criminal conspiracy, cyber intimidation, and the unauthorized publication of classified records. The police are currently weighing appropriate charges under the Cybercrimes Act and national data protection laws as the investigation concludes.
This incident highlights ongoing concerns about data security and insider threats within Nigeria's electoral system. The joint investigation by electoral and security agencies aims to ensure accountability and prevent future breaches of sensitive voter information.
