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Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has said he and his supporters will not place the same level of trust in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the 2027 general election as they did in 2023.
Obi said the experience of the 2023 presidential election had taught him and his supporters to take greater responsibility for protecting their votes.
The former Anambra State governor made the remarks while discussing his plans for the 2027 election, accusing the leadership of INEC during the 2023 polls of failing to meet expectations.
According to Obi, he had previously trusted assurances from the electoral commission that the 2023 election would be conducted transparently.
“In 2023 we took things for granted. We believed INEC. We believed what they said they would do,” Obi said.
He alleged that the then INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, gave assurances that the commission would conduct the election properly but claimed that Yakubu was instead working in favour of his political opposition.
“The INEC Chairman convinced the world that he would do the right thing, when in fact he was working for the opposition,” Obi said.
Obi said the NDC would therefore take additional steps to monitor and protect votes rather than relying solely on assurances from electoral authorities.
“This time, we will only trust them by doing the right thing ourselves,” he said.
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He also disclosed plans to replicate INEC’s election results portal as part of measures aimed at increasing transparency and safeguarding votes during the 2027 election.
Obi said the objective was to ensure that voters and political stakeholders could independently monitor results and protect the integrity of the electoral process.
Reflecting on his recent engagement with supporters in Port Harcourt, Obi said his comments about being ready to “die” for votes were symbolic and intended to encourage people who expressed determination to defend their ballots.
“What I did in Port Harcourt was more about listening to the people. I was not doing the talking,” he said.
According to Obi, one of the people he met told him, “This time, we are ready to die for our votes.”
He said he responded that he was also ready to die with them, explaining that the statement was meant to demonstrate his commitment to ensuring that votes were protected.
“To encourage them, I said I was ready to die with them. It was symbolic. What we are saying is that we are prepared to ensure that our votes count — and they must count,” Obi said.
Obi’s comments come as political parties and candidates intensify preparations for the 2027 general election, with electoral transparency, voter protection and the credibility of the electoral process expected to remain major campaign issues.
