Just In: INEC Announces What Can Possible Undermine 2027 Election
- INEC chairman raised alarm over AI-generated audio, video and images spreading false political content ahead of the 2027 general elections
- The commission said it is auditing its electoral technology systems, including penetrati0n testing and disaster recovery plans
- INEC is exploring a mock presidential election to stress-test voter accreditation and result transmission before the 2027 polls
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The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned that artificial intelligence-driven disinformation now ranks among the most serious threats facing the credibility of Nigeria's 2027 general elections, as the commission races to complete a full audit of its technology infrastructure and weigh whether to conduct a mock presidential election before the polls.
INEC Chairman Prof Joash Amupitan, SAN, delivered the warning on Wednesday in Abuja, at the 13th Annual International Conference of the Association of Communication Scholars and Professionals of Nigeria.
Source: Twitter
The conference was themed "Media, Technology and Elections in Africa: Navigating Digital Disruption and the New Dynamics of Electoral Communication." Amupitan's keynote was read on his behalf by National Commissioner Sani Adam, SAN, and the commission's position was later conveyed in a statement signed by Director of Voter Education and Publicity Victoria Eta-Messi.
AI and the threat to electoral trust
Amupitan said the growing availability of generative AI tools had made it significantly cheaper and easier for bad actors to produce convincing synthetic audio, video and images, adding that manipulated political content had already circulated during recent electoral cycles in West and East Africa.
He warned that such material could reach millions of social media users well before fact-checkers or electoral authorities had a chance to verify it.
He also flagged the danger of algorithmic microtargeting, which he said allows contradictory messages to be pushed simultaneously to different voter segments, eroding any shared factual basis for public debate.
"The danger lies not only in outright fabrication but also in algorithmic microtargeting, which allows conflicting messages to reach narrow segments of the electorate without a shared factual foundation," he said.
Addressing lessons from 2023, Amupitan acknowledged that the deployment of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal, though intended to improve transparency, became a source of public distrust when the technology underperformed.
He said legitimacy is only earned when systems work reliably, are well understood by voters, and when shortcomings are explained honestly rather than quietly managed.
2027 preparations and five-point strategy
On readiness for 2027, INEC said its ICT team had begun engagement with device manufacturers and that the commission was moving ahead with a technology audit covering system redundancy, penetrati0n testing and disaster recovery.
A mock presidential election is also under consideration to simulate accreditation, result transmission and result viewing under near-election conditions.
Amupitan disclosed that INEC had requested a substantial budget for technology and election operations, including replacement of accreditation devices lost or damaged during the last election cycle, though he said the funds had not yet been fully released.
He outlined a five-point strategy for improving the commission's response to electoral communication challenges: integrating technology and communication planning; creating a rapid-response unit to counter falsehoods within the same news cycle; proactively disclosing known system vulnerabilities; deepening partnerships with fact-checkers, scholars and technology platforms; and investing in public media literacy.
Amupitan called on media professionals, academics and technology experts to collaborate with INEC to rebuild public confidence in the electoral process before 2027.
NDC accuses INEC of replacing candidates
Previously, Legit.ng reported that the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of swapping out some of its officially nominated candidates and replacing them with persons the party says it has no knowledge of, ahead of the 2027 general elections.
NDC National Chairman, Senator Moses Cleopas Zuwoghe, made the allegation in a statement on Sunday, following INEC's publication of candidates for the 2027 State Houses of Assembly elections.
Source: Legit.ng
