…Demands INEC bars pro-Tinubu academics from 2027 election duties
...Seeks publication of names of prospective ROs, COs
Sunday Aborisade in Abuja
The Peter Obi Media Office (POMR) has raised concerns over reports that about 600 university academics have endorsed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election, alleging that the development could undermine confidence in the neutrality of academics who may be recruited as electoral officials.
In a statement on Tuesday by its spokesman, Idris Zekeri Jnr., the media office urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to identify all academics involved in political endorsements and prevent those who publicly back candidates from serving as Returning Officers (ROs), Collation Officers (COs) or other electoral personnel in the 2027 general election.
The POMR argued that the issue was particularly significant because university academics have historically been engaged by INEC for sensitive election duties, including the collation and declaration of results.
It therefore questioned whether academics who openly endorse an incumbent presidential candidate could subsequently be perceived as impartial if appointed to electoral positions that involve handling, collating or declaring results.
“Is the framework for manipulating the 2027 election already being established?” the media office asked.
It explained that its concern was not simply about the academics’ right as citizens to support candidates, but about the potential conflict of interest arising from their professional roles in the electoral process.
According to the statement, electoral manipulation, where it occurs, does not necessarily begin on election day but could involve activities undertaken well before voting, including the recruitment and positioning of individuals who could potentially influence the process.
The media office said the reported endorsement had therefore become a matter of public interest, particularly if any of the academics involved could subsequently be considered for sensitive electoral assignments.
It urged Nigerians to remain vigilant ahead of the 2027 election, arguing that public confidence in the electoral process depended not only on the credibility of voting but also on the perceived neutrality of officials responsible for managing and declaring the results.
The group specifically called on INEC to release the names of the academics involved in the reported endorsement and any other political endorsements involving persons who could potentially serve as election officials.
It also demanded that the commission “formally prohibit” such academics from serving as returning officers, collation officers or electoral staff during the 2027 general election.
Beyond the immediate controversy, POMR called for greater transparency in the recruitment of electoral officials, urging INEC to publish the names of prospective returning and collation officers sufficiently ahead of elections.
It said such disclosure would enable civil society organisations, political parties and members of the public to scrutinise the political neutrality of those being considered for sensitive election responsibilities.
The statement also called on university governing councils and academic bodies across the country to introduce stricter conflict-of-interest regulations governing the participation of academic staff in partisan political mobilisation.
POMR maintained that academics should be free, like other citizens, to exercise their political rights, but argued that those who publicly identify with candidates should not simultaneously occupy positions where their neutrality could become a subject of controversy during elections.
The media office said Nigerians were already watching developments ahead of 2027 and warned that any perception that an electoral network had been established in favour of a particular candidate could damage confidence in the outcome of the election.
It stressed that the ultimate decision on who governs the country should rest with voters through a credible and transparent electoral process.
“The people must choose their leaders, and the outcome must be decided by their votes, not by a pre-arranged electoral network,” the statement said.
The POMR statement was issued against the backdrop of growing political activities ahead of the 2027 general election, with political parties, aspirants and support groups already mobilising across the country.
However, the media office did not provide details identifying the reported 600 academics or independent evidence establishing that they had been selected or were being considered for electoral duties in 2027.
Its allegation that the endorsement could constitute an early stage of an electoral manipulation scheme therefore remains a political claim requiring verification.
The controversy nevertheless places renewed attention on the long-standing debate over the recruitment of university academics as election officials and the safeguards required to ensure that those entrusted with sensitive electoral responsibilities are, and are seen to be impartial.