INEC Sued Over Failure To Account For N55.9bn 2019 Election Funds

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has dragged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before the Federal High Court over its alleged failure to account for N55.9bn earmarked for election materials used in the 2019 general elections.

In a statement on Sunday, SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, said the funds were meant for the procurement of smart card readers, ballot papers, result sheets and other essential election materials.

The organisation said the allegations are contained in the latest annual report of the Auditor-General of the Federation (AGF), published on September 9, 2025.

The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/38/2026 and filed last Friday in Abuja, seeks an order of mandamus compelling INEC to explain how the N55.9bn was spent.

SERAP is also asking the court to direct the commission to disclose the names of contractors paid from the funds, including the identities of their directors and shareholders.

According to SERAP, the AGF’s 2022 audited report alleged that INEC “irregularly paid” over N5.3bn to a contractor for the supply of smart card readers for the 2019 polls without obtaining prior approval from the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) and the Federal Executive Council.

The report reportedly stated that the payment was made without supporting documents and that there was no evidence that the items were supplied to the commission.

INEC, the organisation said, claimed it did not seek approval because the procurement of smart card readers fell under national security and was therefore exempted from the Procurement Act.

However, the Auditor-General reportedly rejected the explanation, describing it as inconsistent with the law, and insisted that INEC ought to have obtained a Certificate of No Objection from the BPP. SERAP added that the AGF expressed concern that the funds “may have been diverted” and called for their recovery and remittance to the treasury.

The group further cited the report as alleging that INEC paid over N4.5bn to six contractors for ballot papers and result sheets without documentary proof of supply or evidence of due procurement process, including advertisement, bid evaluation and approval procedures.

Other allegations contained in the report include questionable payments of over N331m to contractors, failure to deduct and remit more than N2.1bn in stamp duties, non-retirement of over N630m in cash advances to INEC officials, and the award of contracts worth more than N41bn for printing election materials without following due process.

SERAP also said the AGF queried a contract for the supply of four Toyota Land Cruisers to INEC for over N297m, noting that market surveys showed the vehicles did not cost more than N50m each at the time, while INEC allegedly paid about N74m per vehicle.

The organisation argued that INEC must operate transparently and without corruption to guarantee free, fair and credible elections, adding that the commission cannot effectively discharge its constitutional responsibilities if it continues to fall short of accountability and the rule of law.

No date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.