The Independent National Electoral Commission has called on Nigerians to protect electoral integrity and rebuild public confidence in the electoral process ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner in Abia State, Sylvia Agu, made the call in Umuahia on Wednesday at the 2026 Media Retreat and Press Week of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Abia State Council.

The event was themed, “The Future of Journalism in an Era of Disinformation.”

Agu warned that misinformation and false narratives could undermine public confidence in elections, stressing that the credibility of the 2027 polls would depend not only on activities at polling units but also on the information Nigerians received and believed.

“In this digital age, our good name as a nation, our electoral integrity, is what is constantly at risk of being affected by falsehood. The imperative of electoral integrity cannot be overemphasised.

“The 2027 elections will not be won or lost merely at the polling gates. It will be won or lost in the realm of perception, information and public trust,” she said.

The REC identified declining public confidence as a major challenge facing Nigeria’s electoral process, noting that perceptions about the conduct of elections and the credibility of information shared with voters could shape their trust in the system.

She said INEC was strengthening the use of technology in the electoral process, including the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System and the INEC Result Viewing Portal, to improve transparency and restore public confidence.

Agu described the BVAS as an important safeguard against electoral malpractice, particularly fictitious accreditation and voting.

“The BVAS is for accreditation. It has gone a long way to salvage benefits. The drama that played out in 2023 was salvaged by the BVAS. It is a game changer. But for the BVAS, we don’t know who registered,” she said.

She added that the commission had continued to improve its election technology by applying lessons learnt from previous electoral cycles.

According to her, its current priorities include strengthening the BVAS and other technological systems, improving cybersecurity, protecting voter and election data, and ensuring the reliability of its digital infrastructure.

Agu said the commission was also exploring the responsible use of artificial intelligence to improve operational efficiency, planning, data analysis and decision-making.

She, however, stressed that AI would support rather than replace human judgement in the commission’s operations.

“AI is not intended to replace human judgement. Rather, it is intended to assist staff, improve operational effectiveness and support informed decision-making, while maintaining transparency, accountability, ethical governance and human oversight,” she said.

The REC further disclosed that INEC had been testing its technological equipment and information technology facilities ahead of the 2027 elections to minimise the risk of technical failures.

“In fact, in the past two months, we have been testing our power banks, all the systems we have, and our IT facilities. We have been testing the system because we don’t want to hear stories again. We learnt from the 2023 election of that glitch,” she said.

She noted that the reliability of election technology depended on the capacity of the personnel operating it, adding that INEC was investing in continuous training and retraining of its staff.

According to her, the commission’s preparations include technical training, voter education, simulation exercises, knowledge sharing and other capacity-building initiatives to ensure that its personnel are competent and prepared for the elections.

INEC’s preparations for the 2027 general elections come amid continuing public debate over the performance of its technology during the 2023 polls, particularly the delayed transmission of presidential election results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal.

The commission had attributed the delay to technical glitches, while the development attracted criticism from political parties, observers and sections of the electorate.

The experience renewed calls for greater transparency, improved technological reliability and stronger public confidence in the electoral process.