Osun Poll: Vote Buying and BVAS Failures Reported

The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room conducted an assessment of the Osun State governorship election held on Saturday, identifying significant issues such as vote buying, malfunctions of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), and logistical delays. Observers noted that while the election was largely peaceful and voter turnout was commendable, there were allegations of political actors attempting to induce voters with cash and other incentives post-voting.

Instances were reported where party agents recorded voters' names and phone numbers, and some voters received tags indicating their party preferences. The BVAS faced challenges, including slow accreditation and difficulties in fingerprint and facial recognition, particularly for elderly voters.

Delays were also attributed to the late distribution of election materials due to a court order adding the SDP candidate to the ballot. Despite these issues, 98.43% of polling-unit results were uploaded to the INEC Result Viewing Portal by August 16.

The Situation Room urged INEC to conduct a transparent post-election review to improve future elections.