Another Shocking Discovery Hits INEC Voters’ Register

A pair of screenshots of Voters’ Register from the Independent national Electoral Commission (INEC) website circulating online has triggered fresh questions about the accuracy of Nigeria’s electoral records.

Both screenshots, amongst others, appear to list “AARON CHIMEZIE B.”—one under Eziama High School in Abia State and another in Maiduguri North, Borno State—alongside visibly different photographs.

The online post draws attention to the contrast: a man’s photo in the Abia entry and a woman wearing a green hijab in the Borno entry.

It also points to long stretches of similar names in the two lists, with several apparent spelling differences.

That is an alarming discrepancy if the Voters’ Register screenshots are authentic and show separate voter records.

But the images alone do not establish that one person registered twice, that politicians arranged duplicate registrations, or that anyone committed voter fraud.

ADVERTISEMENT

A shared name is not proof of a shared identity.

The underlying records would need to be checked against INEC’s voter identification and biometric data.

What the Voters’ Register screenshots appear to show

The supplied lists Voters’ Register contain the same sequence of 24 entries, with many names appearing identical and others differing in spelling or transcription.

The most striking match is “AARON CHIMEZIE B.”, which appears in both lists with different photos.

Other entries also appear nearly identical, including “ABAI FAVOUR N.,” “ABAM FIDELIS O.,” “ABARA AMOS,” and several names beginning with “ABBA” and “ABDUL.”

Some entries differ more substantially between the two supplied transcriptions—for example, “ABDULLAHI” versus “ABDULL ALI,” and “ABOIM” versus “ADIM.”

Those could reflect image quality, optical character recognition, transcription, or differences in the underlying entries.

The Voters’ Register screenshots themselves would need to be examined at full resolution to determine which.

The locations named in the claim are plausible polling-unit labels: INEC’s nationwide polling-unit directory lists Eziama High School I in Aba North, Abia State.

That confirms the location name exists in INEC’s directory.

It does not, however, authenticate either screenshot or confirm that the displayed names and photos came from official records.

Could this indicate duplicate registration in the Voters’ Register?

It could warrant investigation, as the names and images diversely from Abia (South East, Igbo, Christian majority) and Borno (North East, Kanuri, Muslim majority), answer that question.

ADVERTISEMENT

INEC says biometric data is used to verify applicants, link their biometric enrolment to Voters’ Register records.

This will expectedly help prevent duplicate or fraudulent registration.

The decisive check would therefore involve the original register entries and the Commission’s identity and biometric checks—not a name comparison from screenshots alone.

Analysts claim that the latest discovery proves the allegation that politicians are exploiting identical names across states.

The screenshots as described do not identify any politician, show who submitted the registrations, or establish an attempt to manipulate an election.

Voters’ Register errors: a database concern INEC should answer

Even without proof of fraud, the apparent photo mismatch in the Voters’ Register raises a legitimate public question:

Are the screenshots genuine, and if so, why do two entries with the same displayed name have different photographs?

INEC’s preliminary register process is designed to let the public scrutinize records and report errors before the final register is issued.

The Commission says it received more than 5,400 claims and objections in the current voters’ register review.

It reported that it intends to address valid submissions before certifying the final register on December 15, 2026.

INEC’s FAQ describes the display of the preliminary register as a period for scrutiny and necessary corrections.

The Commission should clarify whether the screenshots match its records, whether the entries have distinct voter identification numbers, and whether its biometric checks identify them as separate registrants.

Until that verification is made public, the images should be treated as a lead for scrutiny—not conclusive evidence of a duplicate registration scheme.

Names transcribed from the screenshots described in the post

The following names are transcribed from the voters’ register lists supplied with the post and are hereby left for the readers to judge.

Similarity between the lists is notable, but the transcription itself has not been independently checked against the underlying INEC records.