The United Nations has warned against allowing the 2027 general elections to become a source of violence and instability, urging Nigeria to use the democratic process to promote peace, national cohesion and development.

The warning came as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) disclosed that its technology-enabled verification exercise had identified about 1.5 million questionable voter registration records, with more than 1.27 million confirmed invalid and removed from the National Register of Voters.

The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for West Africa and the Sahel, Leonardo Santos Simão, gave the warning on Wednesday during a visit to INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

Simão said the UN recognised the enormous responsibility facing INEC, particularly amid the security challenges confronting Nigeria and other countries in the West African sub-region.

He said elections should provide citizens with an opportunity to exercise their democratic rights peacefully and determine their political future, rather than trigger violence, division and instability.

The UN representative added that the organisation wanted INEC to understand that it was not alone in the task of organising peaceful and credible elections.

He said the UN would maintain a presence during the electoral process to encourage positive conduct and support an atmosphere conducive to peaceful participation.

“We are here, pleased to give you moral support, that you are not alone in facing this mammoth task,” he said.

Simão clarified that the UN would not participate as an election observer because it had no mandate to undertake election observation.

He stressed, however, that the outcome of Nigeria’s 2027 elections would have implications beyond its borders, particularly for democratic stability, regional integration and peace in West Africa.

According to him, peaceful elections in Nigeria could encourage other countries in the region, while instability could have wider consequences.

Responding, Amupitan said the commission’s efforts to sanitise the National Register of Voters and address irregularities that could undermine the credibility of the electoral process had led to the identification of about 1.5 million questionable registration records.

He said more than 1.27 million records had been confirmed invalid and removed from the database as part of preparations for the 2027 general elections.

Amupitan said the Commission was determined to strengthen the credibility of the voters’ register through technology, improved administrative processes and public participation in the verification exercise.

According to him, Nigeria’s National Register of Voters currently stood at over 103 million, with young Nigerians between 18 and 34 accounting for nearly 29 per cent of the electorate, adding that the Commission was undertaking a comprehensive cleaning of the register through the claims and objections process, ahead of the publication of the final register scheduled for December 15, 2026.

He disclosed that the nationwide PVC collection exercise was also ongoing, while INEC was strengthening the deployment of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) to improve accreditation and transparency in result management.

He said further that INEC would continue to deploy technology to improve electoral administration while strengthening public confidence in the process.

Also speaking when the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Pete Vowles, visited the Commission headquarters in Abuja, Amupitan reaffirmed the Commission’s commitment to conducting free, fair, credible and inclusive elections, saying INEC was taking steps to strengthen its operational, technological and administrative capacity ahead of the polls.

He described the visits as important demonstrations of international confidence and support for Nigeria’s democratic institutions, and said the Commission is ready to deepen its partnerships with both the United Kingdom and the United Nations.

The INEC chairman highlighted improvements recorded in recent off-cycle governorship elections in Anambra, Ekiti and Osun states, the Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections and 16 legislative by-elections across the country.

He identified improvements in election logistics, deployment of personnel and materials, the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), timely uploading of polling unit results to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal, intelligence-driven security collaboration and more efficient result management as areas of progress.

On preparations for the 2027 elections, the INEC Chairman said the Commission has completed nine of the 14 activities on its revised timetable, with operational readiness assessments ongoing across the six geopolitical zones.

He said the National Register of Voters had surpassed 103 million, while the nationwide Permanent Voter Card (PVC) collection exercise was ongoing across the 774 local government areas, with collection points decentralised to registration areas and wards.

The chairman also said the Commission deployed its INEC Candidates Nomination Portal, which processed nominations for 21 of the country’s 22 registered political parties, and procured 57,000 BVAS devices to strengthen its technological capacity.

He listed the procurement of election materials for 176,846 polling units, improved logistics and supply-chain arrangements, and early security coordination through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) among other preparations.

However, he identified misinformation, disinformation, hate speech and the growing misuse of artificial intelligence as emerging threats to electoral integrity, calling for stronger international cooperation to address the challenges.

Amupitan particularly sought expanded collaboration with the United Kingdom on cybersecurity, technological integrity, specialised training for electoral personnel, strategic communication, combating disinformation, and strengthening voter education, and called for continued support in promoting inclusive participation, particularly among youths, women, persons with disabilities, and other marginalised groups.

Responding, the British High Commissioner, who said he had been in Nigeria for about eight weeks, said the visit aimed to familiarise him with INEC’s operations and give him firsthand knowledge of the Commission’s preparations for the 2027 elections.

He described Nigeria’s democracy as important not only to its citizens but also to the West African sub-region and the international community, noting that the forthcoming elections offered an opportunity for the country to demonstrate how democracy could function in a large and diverse society.

Vowles acknowledged the longstanding electoral partnership between Nigeria and the United Kingdom, which has included technical assistance, capacity building, gender mainstreaming, voter education and institutional policy development. (The Nation)