The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a ₦10 billion lawsuit filed by Nollywood actor Emeka Ike against Lere Olayinka, an aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
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Justice Salim Ibrahim, in a judgment delivered on Wednesday, October 28, upheld preliminary objections raised by the respondents, ruling that the suit was incompetent and improperly constituted. The court also dismissed the substantive case for lack of sufficient proof.
Ike had filed the suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1272/2026, alleging that the publication of his voter registration details on social media platform X violated his fundamental rights to privacy and the protection of personal data.
The dispute arose in May after Olayinka shared information relating to Ike’s transfer of voter registration from Imo State to the Federal Capital Territory.
The actor argued that the information was published without his consent and asked the court to award him ₦10 billion in damages against Olayinka and INEC. He also sought an order compelling Olayinka to remove the post and issue a written apology.
However, Olayinka and INEC opposed the suit and urged the court to dismiss it. Olayinka maintained that the information he shared, which he said included Ike’s name and passport photograph, was already publicly accessible and had not been obtained unlawfully.
INEC also argued that the information in question was not confidential and maintained that the publication of certain voter details was permitted under the relevant electoral laws.
Ike, who sought to contest the AMAC/Bwari Federal Constituency seat in the House of Representatives in the 2027 general election under the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), had lost the party’s primary election.
The court’s decision brings the ₦10 billion suit to an end at the Federal High Court, with the judge holding that the case was improperly constituted and lacked sufficient proof.