By Omeiza Ajayi
ABUJA: Stakeholders in the electoral process have named results transmission and collation, and electoral violence, voter intimidation and security collusion, as the biggest threats to the credibility of the 2027 general elections.
They expressed their fears at the first Multi-stakeholder Roundtable on Electoral Reform Implementation, Electoral Integrity and Youth Participation, held in Abuja.
The roundtable was convened by Kimpact Development Initiative KDI and other partners on the Youth Electoral Reform Project YERP-Naija.
A communique issued at the end was signed by Oluwafemi John Adebayo, Head, Research & Programs, Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI), National & North Central Partner, YERP-Naija; Joan M. Ayala, a Director at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC); Prince Chinedu Obi of the Inter-Party Advisory Council IPAC; Peters Maduomba, Executive Director, CLEEN Foundation; and Adubaum Michael of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC.
Others who signed are Ziguda Amuba, Executive Director, Jesz Development Foundation; Charles Pius, Senior Anchor/Reporter, News Central TV; Ibrahim Faruk, Program Coordinator, YIAGA Africa; Prof. Julius Bolade Akinson of Bunta Open University; and Abiodun Olagunji-Ali, Deputy Director, National Orientation Agency NOA.
In a live audience poll, 58 per cent of participants said the greatest gap between legal provisions and practical implementation lay in “results transmission and collation”. Election Day operations followed with 26 per cent, and pre-election activities such as voter registration, campaigns and logistics scored 16 per cent.
On the biggest concern ahead of 2027, 48 per cent picked “electoral violence, voter intimidation and security collusion”. Vote-buying and voter inducement polled 34 per cent, while failures or delays in real-time result uploads through the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) polled 17 per cent.
The communique said: “These findings underscore continuing concerns about electoral security, electoral integrity, and public confidence in election administration and results management.”
It traced the trust deficit to the 2023 presidential election. “Public mistrust following the 2023 presidential election stemmed primarily from INEC’s failure to timeously upload polling unit results to the INEC Results Viewing IREV portal in line with its guidelines and public commitments,” it said.
Participants said the problem persisted in this year’s off-cycle polls. “Delays in uploading results to the INEC Result Viewing IReV portal, including a reported delay of about two hours in Osun, weaken public confidence even where the underlying results are accurate,” the communique stated.
It also pointed to gaps in the rules governing the new technology, stating; “The practical weight of the reform now rests on administrative instruments as much as on the Act. The Act gave legal recognition to technology, but it was the INEC guidelines that introduced the electronic copy of the EC8A (e-EC8A). The guidelines leave open questions, such as where discrepancies between the electronic and physical result sheets are reconciled,” it said.
On the mood of the electorate, the communique observed that many Nigerians, “particularly young citizens, remain skeptical about the credibility of the electoral process ahead of the 2027 general elections.” It added that “vote buying and electoral violence remain a major threat to the credibility of the 2027 general elections.”
Among its resolutions, the roundtable urged INEC to make the result management process “more transparent, effective and timeous in line with Electoral Act 2026 and its guidelines”, especially the mandatory transmission of results to the portal.
It asked the Police, the EFCC and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission ICPC to “diligently prosecute vote buyers and sellers, electoral violence perpetrators and other electoral offenders and provide regular statistics on ongoing cases to serve as deterrent for the 2027 elections.”
Security agencies were also urged “to maintain strict neutrality, professionalism, and collaboration with stakeholders to secure polling environments and border towns against voter suppression and intimidation.”
The communique asked the National and State Assemblies to “expedite legislative measures to establish an Independent Electoral Offences Commission to ensure transparent, prompt, and uncompromised prosecution of electoral offenders as a deterrent.”
It called on INEC and other agencies to “scale up early, aggressive public education campaigns well ahead of the 2027 general elections”, covering voter responsibilities and collection procedures for Permanent Voter Cards PVCs.
On the leadership of the electoral body, participants asked the National and State Assemblies to amend the constitutional and legislative framework by “establishing an independent, non-partisan, stakeholder-based appointing committee to insulate the electoral umpire from political bias and build public confidence.”
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