Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force have questioned Lere Olayinka, media aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, over allegations involving the unauthorised release of a voter’s registration data.
According to a report by Channels Television,the invitation came shortly after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) launched an investigation into the alleged leak of voter information belonging to actor and politician Emeka Ike, raising fresh concerns over data protection, election security and the integrity of Nigeria’s voter management system.
Olayinka confirmed that he honoured the police invitation after being contacted by investigators.
“I was invited on Tuesday. I honoured their invitation,” he said.
INEC said its investigation followed allegations of unauthorised access to its Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) database and the publication of personal information linked to a candidate who participated in recent primaries of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Federal Capital Territory.
The Commission’s National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, said the Department of State Services (DSS) had also commenced an independent probe into the incident.
INEC explained that during the CVR exercise, authorised registration officers were granted limited access to specific sections of the voter database to process new registrations, voter transfers and updates.
The electoral body said such access was restricted to official duties and withdrawn after completion of the exercise.
According to INEC, an initial audit trail helped investigators identify the user account linked to the alleged access, while relevant personnel have been questioned as part of efforts to determine whether internal access-control rules were breached.
The Commission said it was reviewing technical, administrative and operational processes before deciding on further action against anyone found responsible.
The controversy followed a post by Olayinka on social media platform X, where he shared screenshots allegedly containing voter registration details belonging to Emeka Ike.
The information reportedly included the actor’s application number, registration centre, Voter Identification Number (VIN), photograph, name and application details.
Ike, who contested for the House of Representatives seat representing the AMAC/Bwari constituency under the NDC, accused Olayinka of violating his privacy and threatened legal action.
The actor said the publication represented an abuse of personal information and questioned the authority under which the data was obtained.
The incident has intensified national debate over voter data protection, cybersecurity safeguards and the responsibilities of individuals with authorised access to electoral databases.
Election security experts say protecting voter information is essential to maintaining public confidence ahead of future elections, as unauthorised access to electoral data could undermine trust in democratic processes.
INEC has assured Nigerians that the investigation will identify any weaknesses in its systems and ensure accountability where breaches are established.