The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is facing mounting pressure from major political parties over suspected artificial intelligence-generated photographs discovered in its preliminary voters’ register, with demands for an independent investigation, a comprehensive audit and, in some quarters, the resignation of its chairman.
The controversy, which erupted after questionable photographs surfaced on social media, has raised concerns about the integrity of Nigeria’s voter database barely three months before the January 16, 2027 general election.
Although INEC has acknowledged the complaints and promised to investigate, the All Progressives Congress (APC), African Democratic Congress (ADC), Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) insist that the commission must explain how the images entered the register, the number of affected records and whether Permanent Voter Cards have been issued against the questionable entries.
The APC National Chairman, Nentawe Yilwatda, called for an independent and transparent investigation to determine whether the suspicious photographs resulted from technical failures or deliberate attempts to compromise the database.
Speaking through his Special Adviser on Media and Information Strategy, Abimbola Tooki, Yilwatda cautioned against blaming opposition parties or other political actors without credible evidence, insisting that electoral integrity should take precedence over partisan accusations.
“I won’t accuse the opposition, or any political party, without credible evidence,” he said. “Electoral integrity is too important to be reduced to speculation or partisan finger pointing.”
He said the investigation must establish who introduced the photographs, how they entered the database and whether the commission’s existing safeguards were breached.
Yilwatda also urged INEC to provide Nigerians with verifiable answers before the final certification of the voters’ register scheduled for December 15, 2026.
Despite the controversy, he expressed confidence that the commission could still conduct credible elections, describing the incident as an opportunity for it to demonstrate the effectiveness of its verification and correction mechanisms.
He warned that the growing sophistication of artificial intelligence could pose serious threats to elections, particularly when used to fabricate identities, manipulate videos, clone voices and spread false information.
The ADC, however, adopted a tougher position, with its Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, saying the credibility of INEC and its leadership was now at stake.
Shaibu dismissed suggestions that the irregularities should attract less scrutiny because the register was still preliminary, insisting that the commission must explain how the questionable photographs escaped its verification processes.
“A preliminary register is not a licence for carelessness,” he said.
He demanded full disclosure of the number of affected records, the origin of the photographs, whether PVCs had been issued against the entries and the officials or individuals responsible for any established breaches.
While acknowledging that suspected AI-generated photographs did not, by themselves, prove an attempt to manipulate the 2027 election, Shaibu warned that the development exposed weaknesses that could be exploited to create fictitious voter identities, compromise electoral records and spread disinformation.
He challenged INEC Chairman, Joash Amupitan, to restore public confidence through a transparent investigation and the production of a verifiable voters’ register or resign.
“The INEC Chairman must restore confidence through a transparent investigation and a verifiable voters’ register. If he cannot guarantee that, he should resign,” Shaibu said.
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He added that the commission should undergo a comprehensive institutional overhaul if investigations established systemic failures or complicity in the manipulation of voter records.
Similarly, NDC National Leader, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, described the allegations as a national embarrassment, warning that doubts about the authenticity of voter records could undermine confidence in the entire electoral process.
Dickson questioned the reliability of the approximately 103 million registered voters announced by INEC, saying Nigerians deserved assurances that the entries represented genuine and eligible voters rather than fictitious or duplicated identities.
“The principle of garbage in, garbage out applies here,” he said. “If the underlying data are unreliable, the credibility of the electoral process could be undermined.”
The former Bayelsa State governor urged INEC to provide verifiable details of the affected records, the scale of the irregularities and the steps being taken to correct them.
He also called on Nigerians to scrutinise the preliminary register during the public display exercise and report suspicious names, photographs and other discrepancies to the relevant authorities.
The PDP, while welcoming INEC’s decision to investigate the complaints, warned that Nigerians would not accept technical failures as an excuse for any shortcomings capable of undermining the 2027 elections.
Its National Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Mohammed, commended the commission for acknowledging the concerns and promising to examine its systems, describing the response as an indication of its willingness to address identified problems.
“If INEC will own up to this, then it gives us confidence that this INEC is determined to conduct a credible exercise,” Mohammed said.
He, however, insisted that all identified deficiencies must be corrected before the elections, warning that technical glitches would not be an acceptable explanation for failures affecting the credibility of the exercise.
“I believe Nigerians will not understand the language of anything called technical glitches in the 2027 elections,” he said.
Beyond the political parties, former INEC National Commissioner, Festus Okoye, accused the commission of weakening public confidence through its handling of the preliminary voters’ register.
Okoye alleged that INEC failed to publish the register online within the period prescribed by law and only made it available after public pressure, a development he said fuelled suspicions about the commission’s transparency.
“This further fuelled the perception that the commission had something to hide,” he said.
Citing Sections 19 and 9(6) of the Electoral Act, 2026, Okoye argued that displaying the voters’ register for public scrutiny was a statutory obligation, not an administrative decision that INEC could exercise at its discretion.
“A regulator that disregards the law risks undermining its own credibility,” he warned.
The former commissioner also alleged that attempts to compromise voter registration records were not new, claiming that some political actors had previously sought the cooperation of registration officers to manipulate entries.
He noted that the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration exercise had recorded 10,772,421 registrations, stressing the need to identify suspicious entries and hold those responsible accountable.
Okoye urged INEC to investigate registration officers implicated in any wrongdoing and refer them, alongside their alleged sponsors, to law enforcement agencies for prosecution where evidence of criminal conduct exists.
INEC has acknowledged the concerns over the questionable photographs and commenced an investigation, assuring Nigerians that any identified irregularities would be addressed before the final register is certified.
With the December 15 deadline approaching, the commission faces growing pressure to establish the source and scale of the suspicious entries, demonstrate that its verification systems remain effective and reassure Nigerians that only genuine, eligible voters will be included in the register for the 2027 elections.
About the Author
Cecilia Attah is a tech analyst with a degree from Benue State University. She covers tech news and startups at TechRegard with a focus on how technology is transforming Africa and shaping the global landscape.
