The 2026 national election of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has been thrown into uncertainty after the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (ECNBA) postponed the commencement of voting over an alleged cyberattack on its electronic voting platform.

Voting was scheduled to begin at midnight on Saturday, July 18, 2026. However, the exercise did not commence after the Committee said the electoral system had been subjected to an alleged deliberate attempt to compromise and disrupt the process.

In a statement issued in the early hours of Saturday, the ECNBA apologised to candidates, voters, agents, consultants and election observers over the delay.

The Committee said its electronic voting infrastructure was hit by a “deliberate, coordinated and sustained cyberattack” shortly before voting was due to begin.

It stated that its cybersecurity experts, alongside the Election Voting Service Provider, had activated emergency measures to contain the attack and secure the platform.

According to the Committee, technical teams were working to neutralise the threat, restore the system and ensure that the election could proceed without compromising its credibility.

“The system is expected to be fully restored and voting will commence immediately upon restoration,” the Committee stated.

The ECNBA did not give a new time for the commencement of voting, saying the exercise would only begin after the platform had been fully secured.

The Committee clarified that voting had not started and that the system was not accepting ballots when the statement was issued.

It assured NBA members that the portal would be reopened once technical experts had confirmed that it was safe and fully operational.

The ECNBA urged eligible voters to await further official communication before attempting to access the election platform.

Lawyers Warned Against Fake Links

The Committee also warned members against accessing unofficial platforms or responding to unauthorised messages claiming to provide links to the election portal.

It said the only approved voting platform was its designated portal, warning that other links or communications could form part of the alleged malicious campaign against the election.

The ECNBA urged lawyers to rely exclusively on information released through its official communication channels.

Despite the disruption, the electoral body said candidates, their agents and independent observers remained at the designated monitoring centre.

It added that the election was still being supervised by the Committee while efforts continued to restore the voting platform.

The Committee reaffirmed its commitment to conducting a transparent and credible election, insisting that it would not reopen the platform until the identified security threats had been addressed.

It promised to provide further updates through its official communication channels as the technical recovery efforts progressed.

The statement was signed by the Chairman of the ECNBA 2026, Aham Ejelam (SAN), and the Committee’s Secretary, Ibrahim Nassarawa.

Categories: News, Politics, Law
Tags: NBA, ECNBA, cyberattack, election, Nigerian Bar Association, voting
Sources: ECNBA Official Statement

— Atinuke Otedola and her Editorial Team