The Obidient Movement has rejected the plan by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deploy Artificial Intelligence in the collation of election results in 2027.
The movement, in a statement issued by its media and communication directorate, described the plan as “reckless and unacceptable”, even as INEC admits that its AI governance framework has not been finalised.
Key Highlights
- The Obidient Movement rejects INEC’s plan to use AI in collating 2027 election results.
- It describes the plan as “reckless and unacceptable”, noting that INEC’s AI governance framework is not yet finalised.
- The group accuses INEC of switching off IReV in 2023 and blaming a “glitch”.
- It raises concerns over the INEC chairman’s warning against announcing results not issued by the commission.
- The movement demands publication of Forms EC8A to EC8E on IReV and a transparent, auditable technology framework.
“INEC cannot tell Nigerians that it intends to introduce AI into one of the most sensitive stages of the electoral process while simultaneously admitting that the rules governing its use are still being developed.
“Nigerians are not guinea pigs for another untested electoral experiment. We reject the use of AI in results collation and demand that INEC immediately abandon the plan,” the movement insisted.
The group stressed that after the “disastrous” credibility crisis surrounding the 2023 elections, INEC should be doing everything possible to restore public confidence.
Instead, it said the commission continues to introduce opaque processes that create even more questions about how results will be generated, verified and ultimately declared.
Movement Recalls 2023 IReV ‘Glitch’
The Obidient Movement maintained that it will not accept a situation where INEC, having failed to deliver credible elections in 2023, introduces AI into the results process and then looks for technology to blame when things deliberately go wrong.
It accused INEC of switching off the IReV in 2023 and then blaming a “glitch”.
According to the movement, since the 2023 strategy has now become obsolete, INEC is looking for something else to blame this time, which it said will not be accepted.
“Nigerians demand a transparent, auditable and verifiable process in which every result can be traced from the polling unit to the final declaration.
“We are equally concerned by the INEC chairman’s warning to Nigerians and media organisations against announcing or declaring results that do not come from INEC.
“While the commission has the statutory authority to declare official results, such warnings, coming at a time when INEC is simultaneously pushing an unfinalised AI framework, raise serious questions about what the commission is trying to control and why,” the movement added.
According to the Obidient Movement, INEC’s body language reinforces the concerns and allegations that have continued to circulate about the relationship between the commission, the APC and the Tinubu administration.
The group alleged that there have been rumours of the INEC chairman being in France with Tinubu, Wike and other political actors of the APC to perfect rigging strategies for 2027.
It said the alleged plot could explain Wike’s renewed confidence about who would win what in 2027.
It added that it also explains the INEC chairman’s insistence that AI will be used in the 2027 elections, despite the fact that INEC has perpetually failed in the basics.
Read also:
- 2027: Obidient Movement Raises Concerns Over INEC’s AI Plans
- 2027: INEC Sets Up AI Division To Detect Election Result Manipulation
- INEC Warns Parties Over 2027 Candidates Not on Submitted Register as Voter Register Tops 103 Million
‘Nigerians Will Not Accept Manufactured Results’
“INEC must understand that Nigerians will not accept any arrangement that gives room for the manipulation or manufacture of election results.
“All the multiple alterations and defacing of election result sheets in 2023 were not because of the absence of technology.
“Instead, they were clear demonstrations that INEC continues to act in bad faith to steal the mandate of Nigerians and hand it over to criminals.
“The lesson from 2023 should be clear: Nigerians will not accept manufactured results in 2027. The votes of Nigerians belong to Nigerians.
“No algorithm, server, software, official or political party has the right to alter the wishes of the people,” the group stressed.
The movement demanded the immediate abandonment of plans to use AI in election results collation.
It urged INEC to publish a clear, transparent and independently auditable framework for every technology to be deployed in the electoral process, and to ensure that results remain traceable to the polling unit and verifiable by political parties, observers, journalists and citizens.
It also demanded the publication of Forms EC8A, EC8B, EC8C, EC8D and EC8E on IReV, as well as a guarantee that the will of voters, and not the preferences of political actors or INEC officials, determines who wins elections.
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