INEC’s Fight Against Fake News Ahead of 2027 Elections

….Amupitan seeks media pact against fake news, deepfakes

…Commission upgrades BVAS, result transmission, cyber-defence

…. Presidential, NASS polls hold January 16
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that nationwide collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will commence on Friday, October 9, 2026, as the commission intensifies preparations for the 2027 general elections.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, disclosed this on Thursday in Lagos while delivering the keynote address at the 10th Annual Conference of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP), with the theme: “2027 Elections: Trust, Transparency and Shared Responsibilities.”

Amupitan said Nigeria’s National Register of Voters has crossed the 103 million mark, following the completion of the three-phase Continuous Voter Registration exercise and biometric data processing. The figure was also reported by INEC earlier this week.

He urged online publishers to mobilise Nigerians to collect their PVCs and provide accurate information about collection centres, while warning that misinformation, fake results, AI-generated deepfakes and sensational reporting could undermine public confidence in the electoral process.

The INEC chairman said the commission had upgraded its technological, logistical and administrative systems ahead of the elections, including the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), electronic transmission and public visibility of polling-unit results, cybersecurity infrastructure and logistics deployment.

According to him, the commission is also working with technology partners, including Google and Microsoft, on AI-assisted data auditing and cyber-defence measures aimed at protecting electoral databases against cyberattacks and unauthorised data manipulation.

103m voters, PVC collection begins Friday
Amupitan said the three phases of the Continuous Voter Registration exercise produced more than 10.6 million new registrations.

He gave the figures as 2,611,266 registrations in Phase I, 4,121,835 in Phase II and 3,867,997 in Phase III, bringing the total new registrations to 10,601,098 based on the figures contained in his GOCOP address.

The commission, he said, had completed the processing and printing of new voter cards using its newly introduced Printable PVC technology.
“Having completed the processing and printing of new voter cards using our newly introduced Printable PVC technology, the nationwide collection of Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) will officially commence tomorrow, Friday, 9th October 2026,” he said.

Recent reporting from the commission puts total new registrations across the three phases at 10,772,421, subject to the final biometric process, with the national register exceeding 103 million voters.

Amupitan appealed to GOCOP members to use their platforms to educate citizens on where and how to collect their PVCs.

INEC upgrades BVAS, result transmission
The INEC chairman said the commission had embarked on a nationwide audit and upgrade of BVAS devices to ensure that they were ready for deployment.

He also highlighted the enhanced eEC8A system, through which polling-unit result sheets are digitised and transmitted after counting, with the objective of improving transparency and reducing opportunities for alteration during collation.

According to him, scanned Form EC8A results will be cryptographically signed and transmitted to the public result-viewing portal, providing greater visibility from the polling unit to the public.

The commission is also deploying AI-assisted auditing and layered cybersecurity measures to protect its systems from cyber intrusions, distributed denial-of-service attacks and unauthorised data injection.

INEC procures vehicles, begins logistics deployment
Amupitan disclosed that the commission had commenced the delivery of non-sensitive electoral materials to its 36 state offices and the Federal Capital Territory.

He said new operational pickup vehicles had also been procured and were being distributed to state and local government offices to address transportation challenges, particularly in difficult terrains, riverine communities and remote settlements.

He added that INEC had introduced a centralised operational framework for tracking electoral materials, storage and vehicle movements ahead of Election Day.

‘INEC has no preferred candidate’

Amupitan assured Nigerians that the commission under his leadership would remain neutral, insisting that its allegiance was to the Constitution, the law and Nigerian voters.

“INEC has no preferred candidate, no favored political party, and no institutional interest other than protecting the sacred and uncoerced will of the Nigerian voters.”

He said the commission had adopted a zero-tolerance approach to partisanship and administrative misconduct among its officials.
According to him, election officials who compromise neutrality or violate their obligations would face dismissal and prosecution under the law.

INEC seeks pact with GOCOP against fake news
The commission proposed a three-point operational partnership with GOCOP ahead of the 2027 elections.

The first is dedicated digital fact-verification, through which INEC said it would provide media organisations with access to verify field reports, security incidents and technical issues before publication.

The second is rigorous editorial self-regulation, with GOCOP members expected to sanction platforms that publish unverified polling-unit results, altered result sheets or inflammatory speculation.

The third is a national voter-education partnership to help Nigerians understand PVC collection, voting procedures, accreditation requirements and other election-related processes.

Amupitan warned that the speed of digital information must not come at the expense of accuracy.

He urged online publishers to reject clickbait journalism and avoid publishing unverified claims of electoral fraud or system failure, arguing that corrections often cannot completely repair the damage caused by false reports.

2027 polls: January 16, February 6

The INEC chairman said the commission was progressing with its statutory timetable ahead of the 2027 elections.

The Presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled for January 16, 2027, while the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections are scheduled for February 6, 2027. The dates are contained in INEC’s revised electoral calendar.

With the polls approaching, Amupitan said the commission was moving from strategic planning into intensified operational readiness, quality assurance and physical deployment.

He said readiness assessments had already been conducted in the South-West and North-West geopolitical zones, with the exercise continuing across the remaining zones.