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INEC Declares 2023 Presidential Election Results Official and Authentic
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reaffirmed the authenticity and official status of the results from the 2023 presidential election.
This declaration comes in response to claims by the Centre for Collaborative Investigative Journalism (CCIJ), which alleged discrepancies between the results published on INEC’s website and those reported by returning officers at the National Collation Centre.
CCIJ’s letter, dated August 7 and addressed to INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, referenced reports of 1,578 polling units (PUs) where voting was cancelled due to irregularities.
The letter, based on the Freedom of Information Law, noted that while reasons such as overvoting and violence were cited, no specific figures were provided. CCIJ highlighted that the total number of registered voters was approximately 1,205,000.
In response, INEC’s spokesman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, dismissed these claims, stating that the Commission does not announce election results via YouTube and maintained that there are no discrepancies in the reported figures.
Oyekanmi assured that the number of polling units and registered voters remains consistent with the official results announced by INEC.
He explained that results can be cancelled for reasons such as violence, overvoting, or failure to use the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), as outlined in the Electoral Act of 2023 and the INEC Regulations and Guidelines for the Conduct of Elections (2022). He invited the public to review the comprehensive details on INEC’s official website, www.inecnigeria.org.
Oyekanmi emphasized that the results of the 2023 presidential election, as presented by the State Returning Officers and the Returning Officer for the Federal Capital Territory at the National Collation Centre in Abuja, are both official and accurate.
He also disputed CCIJ’s figures from Imo State, asserting that they do not align with the publicly reported results from the Imo State Returning Officer.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has paid tribute to late Nigerian actor Olu Jacobs, recalling his contributions to the creative industry and his impact on Nigeria’s cultural identity.
In his tribute, Tinubu described Jacobs as a giant of the Nigerian creative industry and said “He was a giant of the Nigerian creative industry. His passing is a great loss to Nigeria, the African film industry and the global community of lovers of the performing arts. His remarkable body of work will continue to speak to generations yet unborn.
“The nation recognises the enormous contributions of Nigeria’s creative practitioners to the country’s cultural identity, global image and economic development. Olu Jacobs played a big role in creating this identity.”
Human rights lawyer and activist Deji Adeyanju has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare a state of emergency over the proliferation of counterfeit and substandard drugs and consumer products in Nigeria.
Adeyanju also called for the removal of the Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, as well as the heads of other regulatory agencies, including the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON).
“Nigerians are being exposed to dangerous products daily, from fake and substandard medicines to unsafe consumer goods, with reports of drugs being sold wholesale in the open under the hot sun. No responsible government should expose its citizens to such risks and expect mortality rates not to rise.”
Adeyanju also called out NAFDAC over what he described as failures in regulating the circulation of counterfeit and substandard products in the country.
It can be noted that various counterfeit products continue to circulate in Nigerian markets, while NAFDAC has also reported seizures and destruction of counterfeit, expired and substandard products.
Lagosians have lamented heavy traffic caused by ongoing construction work at Kara Bridge along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
The Federal Government announced that repairs on the damaged expansion joints at Kara Bridge would begin on September 8, 2026. The project, initially scheduled to begin in August, was delayed to allow further traffic management planning due to concerns over its impact on motorists.
Since work began, traffic around the Kara area has become heavy, with Lagosians sharing updates on social media about spending two hours or more on the road.
Some commuters say the delays have made their 9-to-5 routines difficult, with several hours spent travelling to and from work.
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