The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is considering a comprehensive audit of its electoral technology systems and a mock presidential election ahead of the 2027 General Elections.
The proposed measures are aimed at identifying weaknesses in the commission’s electoral technology and testing its readiness before the next general elections.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, disclosed this in Abuja while delivering the keynote address at the 13th Annual International Conference of the Association of Communication Scholars and Professionals of Nigeria (ACSPN).
Amupitan, who was represented by National Commissioner, Prof. Sanni Adam, said the proposed technology audit would examine system redundancy, penetration testing and disaster recovery planning.
According to him, INEC must identify and address vulnerabilities before they are exposed during an election.
The INEC chairman also disclosed that the commission was exploring the possibility of conducting a mock presidential election ahead of 2027.
He said the exercise would provide a full test-run of voter accreditation, results transmission and results viewing under conditions designed to closely mirror election day.
The proposed measures, he said, were in response to concerns over the reliability and performance of electoral technology during the 2023 general elections.
Amupitan said INEC intended to approach the 2027 elections with systems that had been thoroughly tested.
He, however, cautioned that even flawless technical performance on election day would not, by itself, guarantee the integrity of the election.
According to him, threats have increasingly shifted towards the information ecosystem surrounding elections.
The remarks came as stakeholders called for stronger collaboration to combat misinformation, disinformation and other forms of information disorder ahead of the 2027 elections.
The Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Issa-Onilu, urged the media, fact-checkers, academia, civil society organisations, security institutions and technology platforms to work more closely to tackle the challenge.
Issa-Onilu said technology had created opportunities for greater citizen participation in political communication but had also accelerated the spread of misinformation, disinformation and hate speech.
He urged Nigerians to pause before forwarding political content and ask basic questions about its source and credibility.
The National President of ACSPN, Prof. Rotimi Williams Olatunji, also called for an integrated electoral information integrity framework to address AI-driven disinformation and other emerging digital threats ahead of 2027.
Olatunji said the rapid development of artificial intelligence, social media, digital platforms, algorithms and data-driven political communication was changing how citizens received information, formed opinions and participated in democratic processes.
The stakeholders spoke at the conference themed, “Media, Technology and Elections in Africa: Navigating Digital Disruption and the New Dynamics of Electoral Communication.”
The event brought together communication scholars, media practitioners, policymakers, electoral authorities and other stakeholders to examine the changing digital environment and its implications for elections and democratic governance.
