Rebuilding electoral trust requires transparency, not promises

By Yusuf Musa

The outcome of credible elections is a shared responsibility of political parties, candidates, security agencies, the media and citizens, but INEC carries the primary institutional duty of ensuring that the process is properly managed to enable voters make their choices freely and have confidence that those choices will be respected. As 2027 approaches, INEC must understand that public trust cannot be secured through assurances alone.

Public confidence in an election is shaped long before voters arrive at polling units. It depends on whether citizens believe the institution responsible for conducting the election can manage the process fairly, maintain accurate records and provide credible explanations when questions arise. As Nigeria approaches the 2027 general elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) faces a significant challenge in demonstrating that its preparations will translate into an electoral process that Nigerians can trust.

Recent concerns surrounding the Commission’s preliminary Register of Voters have brought this challenge into focus. Following its online publication, some citizens identified photographs they suspected were generated using artificial intelligence. The concerns prompted INEC to issue a clarification, acknowledging that questionable records had been identified and were undergoing review. The Commission also stated that the final register would be certified after undergoing necessary verification and corrections process. The discovery of questionable records does not, by itself, establish that the entire register is compromised. However, it raises legitimate questions about the registration and verification processes that allowed such records to enter the system, how were they introduced, and what measures will ensure that the final register is accurate and reliable.

These questions become important when considered alongside INEC’s warnings about the growing use of artificial intelligence to spread electoral misinformation. At the National Summit on Electoral Information Integrity on 3 November 2026, the Commission’s Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, warned that manipulated videos, cloned voices, fabricated images and coordinated online campaigns could undermine public confidence in the 2027 elections. There is an uncomfortable contradiction here. Citizens are being advised to verify information and be cautious about AI-generated content, yet concerns about similar content have emerged from a database managed by the electoral commission itself. The issue is not that the two situations are necessarily equivalent, but that the incident places an additional responsibility on INEC to demonstrate the standards of verification and accountability it expects from the public.

The register controversy also illustrates why INEC’s approach to public communication matters. In an environment where information spreads rapidly through social media and messaging platforms, silence or delayed explanations can create room for speculation, and issuing a statement is not always enough to address public concerns. Citizens need clear, timely and accessible explanations that address the actual concerns being raised. INEC should maintain a reliable channel for public enquiries and corrections, and make important clarifications available in languages and formats that people can understand.

Equally, the Commission must distinguish between deliberate disinformation and legitimate public scrutiny. Not every criticism of INEC is an attempt to undermine the electoral process. Citizens have the right to question its decisions, identify possible irregularities and demand explanations. The willingness of people to examine the preliminary voter register and raise concerns should be recognised as part of the public scrutiny that the display exercise is designed to encourage. The responsibility of the Commission is to investigate such concerns and respond with verifiable information.

Beyond the register, public confidence will also depend on how INEC manages election technology, particularly voter accreditation and results transmission. The Commission has announced plans to acquire additional Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices and conduct stress tests ahead of the elections. These preparations are necessary, but the public should also be informed about the outcomes of the tests, the challenges identified and the measures taken to address them. Clear procedures are important where technical or communication failures occur, so that electoral officials, political parties, observers and voters understand how the process will be protected.

The International Republican Institute’s August 2026 pre-election assessment identified declining public trust, concerns about results transmission and collation, political violence and vote-buying among the issues requiring attention ahead of 2027. It also observed that improvements in electoral technology and legal safeguards would strengthen confidence only when procedures are applied consistently and transparently. This is a point INEC must take seriously. The credibility of an election cannot be established by the number of devices acquired, the volume of activities completed or assurances issued by officials.

The outcome of credible elections is a shared responsibility of political parties, candidates, security agencies, the media and citizens, but INEC carries the primary institutional duty of ensuring that the process is properly managed to enable voters make their choices freely and have confidence that those choices will be respected. As 2027 approaches, INEC must understand that public trust cannot be secured through assurances alone. The concerns surrounding the preliminary voter register offer the Commission an opportunity to demonstrate transparency, acknowledge weaknesses and show that corrective measures are more than promises. Nigerians need an electoral process whose records are reliable, whose procedures are clear and whose outcomes can withstand public scrutiny. Rebuilding that confidence is not a task to be postponed until election day; it is part of the work INEC must do now.

Yusuf Musa can be reached at yusufmusarigasa@gmail.coma