By Chimezie Godfrey
The Electoral Hub has commended residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for the peaceful conduct of the February 21, 2026, Area Council elections, describing the exercise as relatively free, fair and orderly across the six councils.
In a post-election statement signed by Princess Hamman-Obels, Director of IRIAD–The Electoral Hub, the organisation also praised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for demonstrating “relative professionalism and transparency” throughout the electoral process.
“As an accredited observer committed to promoting electoral knowledge, accountability, inclusion and integrity, we observed the process from pre-election preparations to post-election activities using an electoral accountability framework,” Princess Hamman-Obels stated.
She noted that elections are complex and require collaboration among political parties, candidates, security agencies, civil society organisations, the media and voters.
According to the group, elections across the six area councils—Abaji, Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje and Kwali—were conducted in a peaceful environment, with no incidents of voter intimidation or vote buying in observed polling units.
The group highlighted strict compliance with the election timetable and praised the performance of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), which it said significantly curtailed impersonation and multiple voting.
“BVAS facilitated swift voter accreditation, averaging one to two minutes per voter in observed polling units,” the statement said, though it acknowledged isolated technical glitches in some areas.
The Electoral Hub also commended ad-hoc staff and collation officials for professionalism, as well as the uploading of polling unit results to the IReV portal, which enhanced transparency.
On security, the group noted that agencies under the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) framework—including the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Air Force, Nigerian Navy, DSS and NSCDC—maintained adequate presence at polling and collation centres.
Despite the largely peaceful voting process, the group reported isolated incidents of violence during collation in parts of Kwali and Gwagwa Wards, describing them as “deeply troubling.”
A major concern, however, was very low voter turnout, estimated at about 15 per cent of the 1,680,315 registered voters.
AMAC recorded 7.84 per cent turnout; Gwagwalada 22.30 per cent; and Kuje 27.02 per cent.
The group attributed low participation partly to voter apathy and the late signing of the new Electoral Act 2026, just days before the poll.
It also flagged logistical deficiencies, including lack of shade, tables and incomplete voting cubicles in some polling units, which it said undermined ballot secrecy and professionalism.
Other concerns included uneven distribution of polling units, inaccessible locations, absence of assistive devices for voters with disabilities, incomplete deployment of Presiding Officers in some units, and widespread police roadblocks that hindered voter movement.
The Electoral Hub recommended comprehensive geographic mapping and redistribution of polling units, standardized logistics checklists, strict enforcement of full personnel deployment, improved voter education, and accessibility-sensitive movement planning.
“The election was relatively peaceful and procedurally credible, reflecting progress in electoral integrity. However, operational refinements are necessary to improve voter experience, accessibility and turnout,” Princess Hamman-Obels said.