“BVAS Works Offline” — Ex-INEC Chairman Yakubu Clarifies Amid Network Concerns over E-Transmission

Former INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu has clarified that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) does not depend on internet service to work on election day.

He made this known while speaking in a video that circulated online. His comments followed renewed concerns about poor network coverage affecting elections in some parts of the country.

Yakubu said the BVAS device performs voter accreditation without any connection to the internet at polling units.

“The machine on election day does not require internet for upload, it works offline,” he stated.

He explained that network access is only needed after voting ends, when results are to be transmitted electronically. According to him, polling officials scan the result sheet using BVAS and upload it when they reach an area with network coverage.

“When it comes to transmission of results, that’s where it needs network but if there is no network in the immediate vicinity, the scanned image of polling unit level result which is taken using BVAS will be transmitted as soon as the staff move from the polling unit to the collation centre,” Yakubu said.

He also revealed that INEC has been working with telecommunications companies to improve coverage in areas known as network blind spots.

“And we are working with telecommunications companies and we are satisfied that there are blind spots that can be addressed,” he added.

Yakubu’s explanation comes as public debate continues over the credibility of electronic result transmission in Nigeria’s elections. The BVAS system was introduced to strengthen transparency by using biometric accreditation and uploading polling unit results to a public portal.

However, past elections recorded complaints of network failures in remote areas. These issues later became subjects of court cases and political disputes.

His remarks were aimed at assuring Nigerians that voting itself is not disrupted by internet challenges, and that only result transmission depends on network availability.

Meanwhile, controversy has intensified following recent changes to the Electoral Act by the National Assembly. The Senate amended Section 60 of the law to allow electronic transmission of results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IREV), but also approved a clause that gives priority to manual result sheets where electronic upload fails.

Under the amendment, presiding officers must attempt to upload results electronically after voting. If this fails due to network problems, Form EC8A will be used as the main document for collation and declaration.

The decision has triggered criticism from civil society groups and opposition figures who say the amendment weakens election transparency.

Former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, joined protesters at the National Assembly under the banner of #OccupyNASS. He accused lawmakers of creating loopholes that could allow manipulation of results.

“We know why they are doing it. These people cannot win in free and fair elections. But the people have a duty to demand processes that guarantee free, legal and transparent elections,” he stated.

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