Court Sets July 2 for Hearing in Emeka Ike's N10 Billion Suit Over INEC Data Breach

Nollywood actor and politician Emeka Ike has dragged a senior aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Lere Olayinka, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to court, seeking N10 billion in damages. Ike alleges a gross violation of his fundamental right to privacy and data protection following the publication of his voter registration details on social media.

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the respondents were only served with court processes on Wednesday.

The suit, filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja, centers on a social media post allegedly made by Olayinka in May, which revealed Ike's voter registration transfer details from Imo State to the FCT. Ike, who is also eyeing a House of Representatives seat in 2027, claims this publication exposed confidential information from INEC’s restricted backend portal, violating his constitutional rights.

Justice Salim Ibrahim has adjourned the matter to July 2 for further mention, allowing time for the respondents to file their responses. The court confirmed that the respondents were served within the legal timeframe to file their defense. The controversy has already prompted an investigation by the Force Intelligence Department–Intelligence Response Team, which reportedly questioned Olayinka and an electoral officer over the alleged data leak.

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both respondents were still within the period allowed by law to file their defence.

INEC has denied external hacking of its voter registration database, attributing the disclosure to the misuse of internal credentials by authorized personnel. The electoral body is cooperating with investigations into the incident.

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Olayinka’s publication of his voter information on X, formerly Twitter, without his consent amounted to a gross violation of his fundamental right to privacy and protection of personal data as guaranteed under Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution, the Universal Dec