As Nigeria moves steadily into the build-up for the 2027 general elections, the Executive Director, Yiaga Africa, Samson Itodo, has warned that the early onset of electioneering risks diverting attention from critical governance issues.
In a statement made available to The Guardian on Wednesday, he cautioned that unless political actors recommit to democratic norms and responsible leadership, the mounting tensions could further erode public trust in the electoral process.
He, therefore, called for stronger institutional safeguards and greater political restraint to ensure that Nigeria’s democracy withstands the pressures of an increasingly competitive and high-stakes political contest.
He noted that even though the ban on political campaigns has not been lifted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), overt campaign activities began immediately after the 2023 elections.
Itodo wh,o serves as Principal Partner of the Election Law Centre and Chairperson of the African Union Advisory Group on AI in Peace, Security and Governance, expressed concern that the evolving political landscape has been characterised by heightened elite bargaining, strategic realignments across party lines, and the emergence of premature campaign activities, with more than a year to the general elections.
His words: “The political temperature is heating up at a scale that puts the country’s democracy under intense pressure. Democratic institutions are struggling to respond to pressures emanating from the actions of political actors. The political landscape has been marked by heightened elite bargaining, strategic political realignments, and premature campaigns.
“These developments reflect a troubling pathology of Nigeria’s electoral politics, which relegates governance for the advancement of electoral ambition.
“Consistent with historical precedent in previous election seasons, political actors are spending less time on governance and paying more attention to getting elected. Policy actions and government programmes are structured to advance political aspirations ahead of the elections. This early campaign reveals weak accountability mechanisms that perpetuate a culture of impunity, threatening the credibility of the forthcoming elections”.
The direction of the country’s democracy, he said, will depend on whether institutions, citizens and security agencies can collectively resist authoritarian drift and safeguard the credibility of the electoral process.
He called on the Interagency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) to adopt a framework of patriotic non-alignment, anchored on professionalism, constitutional fidelity and respect for the rule of law, even as he warned that partisan conduct by security personnel could fatally undermine electoral integrity.
The Guardian reports that INEC is scheduled to conduct three off-cycle elections in 2026, including the Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections and the governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun States.
The Yiaga Africa Executive Director pointed out that these polls will test the Commission’s resilience and commitment to protecting its independence, especially the transparency of the results management process.
“The manner in which these elections are conducted will shape public confidence ahead of 2027,” he said. “It may increase citizens’ enthusiasm or deepen voter disengagement”.
