The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it has removed 1,608,660 invalid voter registrations.
Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on Monday, Joash
Amupitan, INEC chairman, said the invalid registrations were identified through
a review conducted using the automated biometric identification system (ABIS)
for the 2025 and 2026 continuous voter registration (CVR) exercise.
In October, the commission faced backlash after Nigerians
flagged duplicate entries, artificial intelligence-generated photos and names
of deceased persons on the voter register.
Amupitan said the commission also removed 873 records
belonging to verified deceased persons, bringing the total number of records
deleted from the register to 1,609,553.
He said the commission had concluded the cleaning exercise
following complaints, claims and objections received during the display of the
preliminary register at registration wards between October 9 and 15, 2026, and
its subsequent online publication.
“The commission harvested 11,088,238 records from the three
phases of the 2025/2026 continuous voter registration (CVR) exercise. Of these,
ABIS initially flagged 1,545,052 for examination,” Amupitan said.
“A flagged record is not necessarily an invalid
registration: automated screening identifies matters requiring review, while
authorised adjudication determines the outcome. Consequently, before
publication of the preliminary register, 1,277,052 registrations had been
confirmed invalid and excluded from the 1,545,052 for examination.
“As a result of objections, claims and complaints received
during the display and publication, a further 268,000 cases underwent
adjudication. A total of 217,722 were confirmed invalid and removed, while
50,278 were cleared as valid and retained.
“Additional screening subsequently identified 113,886
further invalid registrations, which were also removed. The cumulative total of
confirmed invalid registrations removed after the objections, claims and
complaints is 331,608, in addition to the 873 separately verified deceased
voters’ records. This brings the total clean-up to 1,608,660.
“The commission confirms that the current register-cleaning
exercise for the 2025/2026 continuous voter registration (CVR) has been
concluded.
“All 1,608,660 confirmed invalid registrations have been
removed. In addition, 873 records belonging to verified deceased persons have
also been removed as a separate category. The combined total of records removed
under these two categories is 1,609,553.”
On the irregularities recorded in the preliminary voter
register, Amupitan said the commission had identified 54 officials across 10
states for disciplinary action, including possible prosecution, over
irregularities detected in the 2025/2026 CVR exercise.
“To prevent recurrence, the Commission is strengthening its
registration controls with enhanced biometric capture, authentication and
verification safeguards,” he said.
“Fifty-four persons cutting across 10 states have been
identified as complicit, and necessary disciplinary action will be taken
against them, including possible prosecution.”
He said some registration personnel deliberately
circumvented established procedures and abused provisions designed for
exceptional registration circumstances, including those involving persons with
disabilities.
“The affected records have been identified and subjected to
the appropriate review and remediation processes, while the associated
personnel have been identified for further administrative investigation,” he
said.
Speaking on the complaints about omitted names, the chairman
said INEC discovered that most of the affected voters had registered between
2011 and 2023 but subsequently registered again instead of transferring their
voter registration to their new locations.
Amupitan said ABIS invalidated the subsequent registrations,
while the voters’ names remained in their previous registration locations.
The INEC chairman advised affected voters to check their
former registration locations.
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