ABUJA — The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has established a dedicated Artificial Intelligence (AI) Division and begun integrating AI tools into its election results verification and cybersecurity systems ahead of the 2027 general election
INEC Chairman, Prof Joash O. Amupitan, disclosed this Tuesday in Abuja at a World Press Conference and National Stakeholders’ Meeting organised to mark 100 days to the first ballot of the 2027 elections.
Amupitan said automated AI auditing tools were being integrated into the Commission’s results verification process under a five-pillar AI Governance Framework, with mandatory human oversight
He added that INEC was finalising an AI governance policy to guide the deployment of the technology
According to him, the Commission was also integrating AI-driven anomaly detection tools to monitor database traffic and protect its public portals against cyber intrusions and unauthorised alterations
The INEC chairman, however, warned that the growing use of generative AI, voice cloning and deepfake videos posed a serious threat to the integrity of the electoral process
“Generative AI, voice cloning and deepfake videos now make it cheap to fabricate the voices of election officials, doctored result sheets and fake letterheads, and to spread them faster than they can be verified,” he said
Amupitan therefore urged the media to establish fact-checking desks and verify election-related information with INEC before publication
“In national elections, it is far more important to be right than to be first,” he said
INEC seeks release of outstanding funds
The INEC chairman also appealed to the Federal Government to promptly release the remaining portion of the Commission’s budget to enable it to complete preparations for the 2027 elections
“We expect the prompt release of the remaining budget to ensure seamless execution of the remaining activities,” Amupitan said
He acknowledged the Federal Government’s commitment to democratic governance through the timely release of statutory budgetary allocations to the Commission
He said the funds released so far had enabled INEC to meet international vendor obligations, finance the production of critical election technology, upgrade physical infrastructure and sustain multi-stakeholder operations nationwide
The European Union Ambassador to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States, Gautier Mignot, also urged stakeholders to facilitate INEC’s work, particularly by ensuring adequate funding
“This is a Herculean task,” Mignot said
The envoy said the EU respected Nigeria’s sovereignty and would not support any candidate or political party
“Ours is a friendly partnership, respectful of Nigerian sovereignty We don’t impose any view or orientation. And needless to say, we don’t support specific candidates or parties,” he said.
Mignot disclosed that the EU would deploy an electoral mission of experts to monitor preparations for the election, the conduct of the ballot and its aftermath, before issuing recommendations
INEC to engage 14m ad hoc staff
Amupitan said INEC would require 707,384 ad hoc personnel for the Presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, and another 707,384 for the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections on February 6
He put the total number of engagements at 1,414,768 across 176,846 polling units, compared with about 12 million in 2023.
He said the bulk of the personnel would again be drawn from the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC)
Amupitan recalled that more than 70 per cent of the ad hoc staff deployed in 2023, nearly 850,000 people, were corps members and student volunteers
He said the INEC Portal for Recruitment of Election Staff opened on September 18 and would close at midnight on November 18
Voters’ register hits 103m
The chairman disclosed that the National Register of Voters had risen to 103 million following the registration of 10,772,421 new voters in three phases of the Continuous Voter Registration exercise
He said the register would be displayed for public scrutiny from October 9 to 15, while distribution of Permanent Voter Cards from Phase One would begin at Local Government centres on October 9
Amupitan added that 18 of the 22 registered political parties had submitted candidates for the presidential election
He also disclosed that INEC received the certified true copy of the Supreme Court judgment in INEC v Zenith Labour Party on Tuesday morning and was reviewing its implications.
Stakeholders demand credible polls
The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters, Adebayo Balogun, said the committee had written INEC to enforce the Supreme Court judgment relating to Section 74 of the Electoral Act
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Electoral Matters, Simon Lalong, said the credibility of the election was a collective responsibility involving political parties, candidates, security agencies, the media, civil society organisations and voters
Representing the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Francis Idu, said clearance operations were ongoing in Kogi, Niger, Benue and Taraba states to quell crisis points and ensure social harmony ahead of the election
The National Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council, Yusuf Mamman Dantalle, commended INEC over the Osun State governorship election but cautioned electoral officials against taking sides with political parties or candidates
Dantalle also urged INEC to engage political parties more extensively before elections
“This election will come and go, but Nigeria will remain,” he said