The Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum (SMBLF) on Monday urged Nigeria’s judiciary and electoral bodies to act independently and swiftly as the 2027 general elections approach, warning that lingering uncertainty over party leadership and candidate eligibility could deny voters meaningful choices.
In a statement, the forum called for an urgent forensic audit of the voters’ register. It cited concerns about suspected artificial‑intelligence generated photographs, duplicate entries and records allegedly belonging to unknown persons that appeared in INEC’s preliminary register.
These demands come amid growing political tension ahead of the January 16, 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections. The forum’s stance is linked to a recent Federal High Court ruling in Abuja that nullified the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) led by Senator David Mark and invalidated actions taken by the party’s executives.
The SMBLF also condemned attacks on political figures, including the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate Peter Obi in Makurdi and the African Action Congress (AAC) activist Omoyele Sowore in Ekiti State. It called on security agencies to investigate the incidents, identify perpetrators and prosecute offenders where evidence warrants.
The statement was jointly signed by:
- Oba Oladipo Olaitan, Chairman and leader of Afenifere
- Senator John Azuta‑Mbata, President‑General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide
- Ambassador Godknows Igali, National Chairman of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF)
- Dr Bitrus Pogu, President of the Middle Belt Forum
“Our most urgent concern is the disturbing discovery of suspected Artificial Intelligence (AI)-generated photographs, duplicate entries and records reportedly belonging to unknown persons in the preliminary voters’ register published by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). These revelations followed public release of registration data and have provoked widespread anxiety about the credibility of the forthcoming polls,” the forum said in a
statement.It further demanded that INEC demonstrate readiness to deploy the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) reliably, protect election infrastructure, train personnel adequately and ensure transparent collation and prompt publication of polling‑unit results in accordance with the law.
The SMBLF clarified that it had not adopted any political party or presidential candidate as its collective choice for the 2027 elections. “Our commitment is to a peaceful, credible and inclusive electoral process in which every eligible Nigerian can vote freely, without coercion, inducement or fear,” the leaders added.
<small>Source: Vanguard News — read the original story there.</small>
