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From Okey Sampson, Umuahia
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has cautioned journalists in the country against publishing unverified election results, manipulated content, and misinformation capable of undermining public confidence in the 2027 general elections.
The Abia State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Prof. Sylvia Uchenna Agu, gave the warning in Umuahia, during the 2026 Media Retreat and Press Week of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Abia State Council.
Prof Agu, speaking on the theme, “Safeguarding Electoral Integrity in the Digital Age: INEC and the Media Ahead of the 2027 General Elections,” identified misinformation, disinformation, artificial intelligence-generated deepfakes, cloned voices, and manipulated result sheets as emerging threats to electoral credibility.
She urged media organisations to prioritise verification over speed, warning that the race to break news must not come at the expense of national stability and public trust.
“The race to break the news must not break the nation,” the REC cautioned, stressing that journalists must resist the temptation to publish unverified information in the pursuit of exclusives.
She advised media practitioners to cross-check election-related information with INEC before publishing, noting that failure to verify claims could expose news organisations to credibility challenges.
Agu further cautioned against declaring results based on information from unauthorised sources, urging journalists to avoid becoming channels for the dissemination of unverified results.
She called on the media to support voter education by explaining relevant provisions of the Electoral Act, 2026, particularly those relating to voter accreditation, electronic transmission of results, and transparency in the electoral process.
Prof Agu disclosed that the Commission was strengthening its technological infrastructure, cybersecurity, and result management systems to safeguard the integrity of the electoral process ahead of the polls.
The REC said the new legal framework had strengthened safeguards around elections, citing provisions mandating the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for accreditation and electronic transmission of polling unit results to INEC’s Result Viewing Portal (IReV).
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The REC recalled how BIVAS helped detect an alleged manipulation of voter accreditation figures in a local government area of Abia State during the 2023 general elections.
She said that BVAS recorded 27,000 accredited voters in the affected council, but the figure was allegedly altered manually to 102,000, a discrepancy that triggered controversy.
“BIVAS was the game changer in 2023. It checked frivolous accreditations. It was BIVAS that saved the situation in Abia because, in a particular LGA, BIVAS captured 27,000 as accredited voters, but it was handwritten as 102,000.
“So, when the controversy came up, our ICT experts simply looked at the figure in IReV as captured by BIVAS,” Agu said.
She said the incident demonstrated the importance of technology in protecting the integrity of the electoral process and preventing discrepancies in accreditation figures from going undetected.
Agu disclosed that INEC was exploring the responsible application of artificial intelligence to improve planning, data analysis, and operational efficiency, while maintaining human oversight and accountability.
A veteran journalist and Columnist with The Sun Newspapers, Chief Ralph Egbu, described the media as a critical constitutional partner in the electoral process. He cited Section 22 of the 1999 Constitution as amended, which mandates the press to hold the government and its agencies accountable. He urged journalists to always balance their reports and not detach themselves from journalism professional ethics.
Chairman, Correspondents Chapel, Abia NUJ, Steve Oko, had earlier in his address, said the retreat was part of the NUJ’s contributions towards deepening democracy and enhancing efficiency of journalists.
Oko said the choice of this year’s theme, “The Future of Journalism in an Era of Disinformation: Preparing Abia Media Practitioners for Democracy and the 2027 Polls,” could not have been more appropriate. He noted that the theme spoke directly to one of the greatest challenges confronting society today, which he said was the growing struggle between truth and falsehood, facts and fabrication, responsible journalism and the deliberate weaponisation of information.
Oko said that the future of journalism will not necessarily belong to those who publish first, but to those who verify best, and will also not belong to those who generate the loudest headlines, but to those whose reports can withstand scrutiny. He warned his colleagues against sacrificing professional ethics on the altar of political, financial, or personal interests.
