Actor and politician Emeka Ike has said he is prepared to take legal action against Lere Olayinka, media aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, over the alleged exposure of his personal data from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) portal.
Ike, an indigene of Imo State, contested the House of Representatives seat for the AMAC/Bwari Federal Constituency in the FCT under the platform of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) but was unsuccessful.
Olayinka recently came under criticism after sharing what appeared to be Ike’s voter registration details obtained from an INEC administrative webpage.
In a post on his X handle on Saturday, Olayinka claimed that Ike was originally registered as a voter in Imo State and only transferred his registration to the FCT on May 15, 2026.
“Emeka Ike was a registered voter in Imo State. He only transferred his INEC registration to the FCT on May 15, 2026 (15 days ago),” Olayinka wrote.
“And he wants to contest for House of Reps in Abuja! Someone who has never voted in the FCT. What happened to his Imo State? This Obidient people enh!!!”
The post included two screenshots that many social media users alleged were obtained from INEC’s administrative portal.
The images reportedly contained personal information, including Ike’s application number, registration centre, Voter Identification Number (VIN), profile photograph, full name and date of application.
Reacting during an appearance on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Tuesday, Ike described the development as disturbing and accused Olayinka of abusing access to sensitive information.
“It is quite shocking and represents the height of political rascality for a government official to access a citizen’s information from the INEC database,” he said.
“It tells you a lot about the level of impunity in the system. People have access to information they should not have access to, and that is quite deplorable. I see it as a huge insult and a slap on every political party and every Nigerian.
“He is telling Nigerians that regardless of who you are, your information can be accessed and used at will. That kind of rascality must be stopped.”
The actor said he was ready to challenge Olayinka over the alleged breach of his privacy.
“I am ready to take him on. He has no right to exploit my privacy and insult Nigerians the way he did. If he has done this before, this should be the last time,” Ike said.
Speaking further, Ike explained why he chose to contest for a federal constituency seat in Abuja rather than in his home state.
“I initially wanted to run in my state, but a number of people approached me and urged me to contest in Abuja. It became a kind of clarion call,” he said.
“I told them I was already making plans to run in my state, but they insisted. The support and encouragement were overwhelming, and after considering the issues they raised, I decided to focus on Abuja.
“The Federal Capital Territory is a municipal area that requires proper representation and attention, and that informed my decision to make the switch.”
