Nollywood actor Emeka Ike has filed a N10 billion lawsuit against the Independent National Electoral Commission and Lere Olayinka over the alleged unlawful disclosure of his personal voter information.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1272/2026, was filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday through his lawyer, Leonard Adeh.
The legal action stems from a controversy that erupted in May after Olayinka shared screenshots on X containing details of Ike’s voter registration transfer from Imo State to the Federal Capital Territory.
The information, which appeared to have been obtained from a restricted INEC administrative portal, was posted while Olayinka questioned the actor’s eligibility to contest a House of Representatives seat in Abuja.
The disclosure sparked public outrage, with critics accusing Olayinka of accessing information that should only be available to authorised INEC personnel.
Following the incident, INEC denied claims that its voter registration database had been hacked. The commission maintained that the leak resulted from the misuse of legitimate internal credentials by authorised users.
Investigators from the Force Intelligence Department’s Intelligence Response Team later questioned both Olayinka and an electoral officer in connection with the alleged data leak.
In his lawsuit, Ike argues that publishing his voter information without consent amounts to a serious violation of his constitutional right to privacy and personal data protection.
He cited Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution, Article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and provisions of the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 as the legal basis for his claims.
The actor is asking the court to declare that INEC has a legal responsibility to safeguard the personal information of registered voters and prevent unauthorised access or disclosure.
He also contends that a June 2 press statement issued by INEC amounted to an admission that the commission failed to adequately protect his data.
Among the reliefs sought, Ike wants the court to order Olayinka to delete the social media post containing the voter records and issue a written apology.
He is also demanding that the apology be published on Olayinka’s X account and in three national newspapers — The Punch, The Nation and ThisDay — for two consecutive weeks.
In addition, Ike is seeking N10 billion in aggravated and general damages, holding both Olayinka and INEC jointly liable for what he describes as a gross violation of his privacy and personal data rights.
The case is expected to further test the enforcement of Nigeria’s data protection laws and the responsibility of public institutions to secure citizens’ personal information.
