Edo Tribunal Admits BVAS Machines Used in 133 Polling Units

The Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja has accepted the Bimodal Verification Accreditation System (BVAS) machines used in 133 polling units during the September 21, 2024, gubernatorial election.

The three-member panel, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, granted the admission following the presentation of the machines by an Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) official. The tribunal had previously issued a subpoena to INEC on January 9, 2025, at the request of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its gubernatorial candidate, Mr. Asue Ighodalo, the petitioners in the case.

The PDP is challenging the election victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Senator Monday Okpebholo, citing alleged over-voting as one of the grounds for their petition. The BVAS machines are crucial evidence in addressing these claims.

After presenting two witnesses, the PDP drew the court’s attention to INEC’s compliance with the subpoena, emphasizing the need for the BVAS machines to support their upcoming evidence regarding over-voting.

An INEC official from the Information Communication Technology (ICT) Department, identified as Anthony Itodo, presented the machines to the tribunal. ¹ He informed the court that they had brought 148 BVAS machines used in 133 polling units as per the tribunal’s order.   

While the petitioners’ lawyer, Robert Emukpoeruo, SAN, initially noted that the official had mentioned 151 machines, INEC lawyer Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, clarified that only 148 were relevant to the 133 polling units in question.

While INEC did not object to the submission of the devices, the legal teams representing Governor Okpebholo and the APC objected, stating that their reasons for the objection would be presented at a later stage.

The three-member panel subsequently ruled to accept the BVAS machines as evidence in the ongoing election petition.