Obidient Movement Rejects INEC Plan to Deploy AI in 2027 Elections
The Obidient Movement has opposed plans by the Independent National Electoral Commission to deploy Artificial Intelligence tools in the 2027 general elections, calling for greater transparency and independent scrutiny before the technology is introduced.
The National Coordinator of the movement, Dr Yunusa Tanko, stated this in response to recent remarks by the INEC Chairman, Prof Joash Amupitan, who disclosed that the commission had commenced deploying AI tools to detect discrepancies and administrative errors in election results.
Amupitan also said INEC was strengthening its systems against AI-generated disinformation, including cloned voices of electoral officers, deepfake videos, forged official documents and fabricated result sheets.
However, Tanko questioned the operational framework of the proposed technology, the specific electoral challenges it is intended to address and the safeguards that would prevent manipulation or abuse.
“The same INEC that has failed to address the most basic issues surrounding electoral transparency, result transmission, and the credibility of its processes is now announcing plans to deploy Artificial Intelligence in the 2027 elections,” Tanko said.
“We reject this proposal in its entirety, particularly as the commission has failed to explain how this technology will work, what problems it is intended to solve, and what safeguards will prevent its abuse.”
Tanko also cited a recent investigation by Mundx Analytics, which he said alleged that presidential results from more than 50,000 polling units were uploaded using mobile phones.
He argued that technological innovation could not replace institutional integrity and called for existing concerns surrounding the electoral process to be addressed before introducing additional technology.
“Introducing AI into a system that has yet to account for its existing failures is not electoral reform. It is an attempt to distract Nigerians from the fundamental questions of institutional independence, transparency, and accountability,” he said.
To strengthen public confidence in the electoral process, the Obidient Movement called on INEC to publish a comprehensive roadmap for the 2027 elections, detailing the technologies, procedures and security measures it intends to deploy.
The group also demanded an independent audit of INEC’s existing electoral technology, with the findings and proposed corrective measures made available to the public.
Tanko further called for a transparent and verifiable result transmission process and insisted that any proposed AI tools should undergo rigorous independent testing and public scrutiny before their deployment in the elections.