N10 billion privateness swimsuit: Wike’s aide, INEC win, Nollywood actor Emeka Ike loses in courtroom

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja Wednesday dismissed a N10 billion basic rights swimsuit filed by Nollywood actor Emeka Ike towards Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant to FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

In his judgment, Justice Salim Ibrahim upheld the preliminary objections of the respondents, ruling that the swimsuit was incompetent and improperly constituted.

The decide agreed with the respondents that the motion didn’t meet the brink for a basic rights enforcement continuing.

Defining basic rights as inalienable and inherent rights derived from pure legislation, he famous that the applicant’s criticism was basically certainly one of breach of knowledge safety legislation.

Justice Ibrahim held that an applicant in such a swimsuit bears the burden of offering sturdy and convincing proof, including that odd and basic assertions wouldn’t suffice.

“The applicant has a burden to prove the facts as alleged by him. In the instant case, I did not see his inalienable rights that had been breached by the 1st and 2nd respondents,” he stated.

The courtroom additional held that the motion was wrongly commenced by originating summons as a substitute of a writ of summons. According to the decide, because the points raised have been contentious and hostile in nature, a writ of summons was the correct mode of graduation.

“On the whole, the notice of preliminary objection by the respondents hereby succeeds, and the ssuit is hereby dismissed. The cumulative effect is that this suit is incompetent, improperly constituted by way of an originating summons,” he held.

Proceeding on the idea, with out conceding, that the courtroom had jurisdiction, Justice Ibrahim additionally decided the matter on its deserves. He stated he was persuaded by the respondents’ affidavit proof and held that the applicant had failed to ascertain his case.

Ike, a House of Representatives aspirant on the platform of the NDC, filed the swimsuit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1272/2026, on Monday, June 15, 2026.

Through his counsel, Leonard Adeh, he sought N10 billion in damages towards INEC and Olayinka for the alleged violation of his basic proper to privateness.

He requested the courtroom to declare that Olayinka’s publication of his database on X with out his approval “amounts to gross breach and violation of the applicant’s fundamental right to privacy and the protection of personal data.”

In a counter affidavit filed by his counsel, Akpama Ekwe, Olayinka maintained that the one particulars contained within the doc he printed have been the applicant’s identify and passport {photograph}, and that this info was already within the public area and had not been obtained by any illegal means.

He stated he owed the applicant no obligation of care or confidentiality and didn’t want his consent to publish the main points.

Olayinka additional argued that Ike, having supplied himself for election to the House of Representatives and being a Nollywood star, couldn’t declare trauma over the circulation of a reputation and {photograph} he had personally introduced to the general public.

He added that info on a voter’s card just isn’t personal information, citing Section 19(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026.

The provision requires INEC, not later than 90 days earlier than a basic election, to nominate a seven-day interval throughout which the voters’ register for every native authorities, space council or ward is displayed or printed for public scrutiny at each registration space and on its official web site.

In its personal counter affidavit, deposed to by Anthonia Makwe, an Assistant Director and Data Protection Officer in its Legal Drafting and Clearance division, INEC stated the data complained of was neither categorised, delicate nor confidential.

The fee acknowledged that its statutory obligations embrace the compilation, upkeep, show, publication, certification and administration of the register of voters beneath the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the Electoral Act 2026 and the National Data Protection Act 2023.

INEC stated it has the statutory and constitutional energy to make voters’ info out there to the general public with out the consent of any registered voter. It added that the fabric allegedly posted by Olayinka on X didn’t emanate from the fee.

Describing itself as a knowledge controller, INEC maintained that it had by no means breached its statutory obligation of care, custody, and safety of voters’ private information held in its secured portal and restricted database.