The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has raised concerns over the lack of transparency surrounding the production of sensitive materials for the 2027 general elections, urging the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to disclose the companies handling the printing.
Atiku warned that keeping details of the contracts and the process of selecting contractors from the public could weaken confidence in the elections.
In a statement issued by his Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, on behalf of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, the former vice-president also called on INEC to explain recent changes involving officials in key departments responsible for election operations and information technology.
Reports indicated that Director Isa Magaji Gum had been moved from the Electoral Operations Department to the Voter Registry Department, while Mrs Oluyemi Titilayo Adeyemi-Showunmi had been appointed to head Electoral Operations. Dr Lawrence Bayode was also identified as head of Information and Communication Technology.
Atiku said the commission needed to explain the reasons for the changes and demonstrate that the decisions followed due process.
“These departments are at the heart of election administration. INEC must explain these decisions, publish the criteria applied and show that every appointment and redeployment followed due process, was based on merit and was free from political interference,” he said.
He also asked INEC to confirm or deny reports that Hitech, or a company linked to it, had secured a contract to print sensitive election materials for 2027.
“We are concerned by reports that more than half of the sensitive election materials, including presidential ballot materials, may have been allocated to an undisclosed company reportedly based in France. There are also questions about reports that the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Plc is handling materials for only 15 to 17 states, while private companies are responsible for the remaining states.”
The former vice-president said Nigerians deserved to know which companies were producing their ballots and how the contracts were awarded.
“Nigerians should not have to depend on unnamed sources to discover who is producing their ballots,” he said.
The statement called for the publication of the names of the contractors, contract allocations, procurement procedures and security arrangements.
Atiku further argued that any contract awarded to Hitech or an associated company would raise questions about the commission’s neutrality.
He cited publicly reported business ties between the Chagoury family, which owns Hitech, and the Tinubu family.
He also referred to controversies surrounding major Hitech contracts under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, including the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
However, Atiku said INEC should clearly address the matter if neither Hitech nor any company linked to it had been selected to print election materials.
He also called on the Central Bank of Nigeria to disclose allocations for banknote printing and explain the roles of local and foreign contractors.
“We urge INEC to maximise the capacity of local security-printing firms and ensure that all ballot papers and result sheets are properly secured and accounted for at every stage of the electoral process. Any attempt to manipulate the 2027 elections will be resisted through the ballot, lawful civic action and other democratic means available to Nigerians,” he said.
Atiku urges INEC to disclose firms printing 2027 election materials