ABUJA, Nigeria – Lai Mohammed, former Minister of Information and Culture, revealed on Tuesday, April 15, 2025, that the federal government engaged international media outlets to counter the widespread allegations of rigging in the 2023 presidential election.
Speaking at the spokespersons summit in Abuja, Mohammed disclosed that he personally led a team to the United Kingdom and the United States, where they engaged directly with major media organisations including The Washington Post, BBC, Associated Press, and The Economist, as well as influential think tanks such as the Hudson Institute, U.S. Institute of Peace, Atlantic Council, and Chatham House.
“The allegations of rigging were largely centred around the delay in uploading results to the IReV portal, which, notably, plays no role in the official collation of election results,” Mohammed said, addressing the forum.
He explained that the team’s mission was to present irrefutable facts to international media and think tanks about how the election was conducted and won.
The team emphasized key aspects of the Nigerian constitution to clarify how the election process works and what constitutes a legitimate victory.
Mohammed elaborated on the legal framework guiding the election, particularly pointing out that under Chapter 6, Section 134 of the Nigerian Constitution, a candidate must not only win the majority of votes but also secure at least 25 percent of votes in no fewer than two-thirds of Nigeria’s states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
He further explained that the opposition candidates from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP) did not meet this constitutional requirement.
According to Mohammed, while the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate won the highest number of votes and secured the necessary 25 percent in 29 states, the PDP candidate met the threshold in only 21 states, and the LP candidate in just 15 states.
The former minister also presented evidence to dispel the rigging allegations, noting that the APC lost in key states like Lagos, Kaduna, Kano, and Katsina, which had high numbers of registered voters but were governed by the APC.
He emphasized that these losses, despite APC governance, further solidified the credibility of the election results.
“The facts are clear, and we’ve provided solid evidence to demonstrate that the election was fair and in line with constitutional guidelines,” Mohammed said.
