INEC RAISES CONCERN OVER AI-GENERATED CONTENT AHEAD OF 2027 POLLS

The Independent National Electoral Commission has warned that the misuse of artificial intelligence to create and distribute manipulated content could pose a serious challenge to Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.

INEC said the increasing accessibility of generative AI had made fabricated audio, videos and images cheaper to produce and more difficult to detect, potentially affecting voters and confidence in the electoral process.

The National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, raised the concern in Abuja while opening a capacity-building workshop for the commission’s Public Affairs Officers from across the country.

Haruna said the threat went beyond fabricated materials, noting that AI could also be used to create highly targeted messages that present different narratives to different groups of voters.

He said the development had made it necessary for electoral technology and communication to be treated as interconnected parts of election management.

According to him, INEC’s public affairs officers would receive training in verification, escalation procedures and clear communication to enable them respond effectively to misinformation and disinformation as the election approaches.

The commission’s Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Victoria Eta-Messi, said the officers played an important role in shaping public understanding of INEC and its activities.

She added that the commission was regularly confronted with attempts to misrepresent its work and weaken public confidence.

The workshop, titled “Strengthening PAOs Capacity for Credible, Verified and Responsible Election Communication Towards 2027,” is intended to strengthen the officers’ ability to monitor the information environment and communicate accurate election-related information.