Former Head of State and Chairman of the National Peace Committee, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, has warned political parties and candidates against character assassination, personal attacks, insults and inflammatory rhetoric ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Abdulsalami gave the warning on Tuesday at the signing of the National Peace Accord in Abuja ahead of the official commencement of campaigns for the presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for Wednesday.

The event was organised by the National Peace Committee in partnership with The Kukah Centre to commit political parties and candidates to peaceful and issue-based campaigns ahead of the 2027 elections.

Present at the signing were the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), President Bola Tinubu, represented by Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume; presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Adewole Adebayo; presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore; and presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi.

Others were the presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Donald Duke; presidential candidate of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), Ambassador Aliyu Bin Abbas; Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, representing Senate President Godswill Akpabio; and Ado Doguwa, representing Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas.

Also present were Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, represented by Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Umar Shehu; Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan; and Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of The Kukah Centre.
Abdulsalami said the Peace Committee had facilitated 30 peace accords since 2015, including five at the national level ahead of the 2015, 2019 and 2023 general elections and 25 at the subnational level, including off-cycle governorship elections.

He said the committee had also established independent faith-based peace structures in 23 states to complement its peace-building efforts at the national level.

According to him, the issues-based peace accord being signed was established in 2019 to encourage political parties and candidates to base their campaigns on issues affecting Nigeria rather than sentiments.

He said the accord commits political parties and candidates to compete fairly on the basis of ideas, policies and programmes, debate opposing views respectfully, organise supporters peacefully and responsibly, protect voters and respect electoral institutions.

It also requires political actors to reject hate speech, incitement, misinformation and other narratives capable of provoking intimidation and violence and undermining electoral integrity.

Abdulsalami expressed concern that political campaigns had increasingly neglected party manifestos and programmes, giving room to name-calling, personal insults and character assassination.

“Over the years, political campaigns and rallies have neglected the significance of party manifestos and programmes, and created a platform for political parties to resort to name-calling, personal insults and character assassination,” he said.

He said the trend had taken dignity and decency out of public discourse and created a toxic atmosphere capable of inciting citizens against the state, political parties and candidates.

“It is for this reason that since 2019, the Peace Committee has established the first peace accord to encourage issue-based campaign,” he said.

The former Head of State said the accord was anchored on provisions of the Constitution, the Electoral Act and other extant laws, adding that this was intended to ensure that the commitments made by political actors were firmly rooted in the legal framework.

He said it would also serve as a reminder to political parties and candidates of their obligations and responsibilities throughout the electoral process.

Abdulsalami disclosed that the committee had established an Election Security Information (ESI) Hub to monitor electoral offences and broader security developments and assess their potential impact on elections across the country.

According to him, the hub monitors, verifies and analyses election security developments and produces monthly trend assessments and contextual analysis to support early warning, preventive engagement and evidence-based decision-making.

He said the initiatives reflected the committee’s commitment to moving beyond electoral peace messages towards a comprehensive approach involving preventive diplomacy, stakeholder engagement, citizen participation, legal compliance, field-level monitoring, evidence-based analysis and accountability.

Abdulsalami urged political parties, chairmen, candidates, campaign councils and spokespersons to ensure that their campaigns remained peaceful and free of incitement, personal insults and abuse.

He appealed to the political actors to campaign on issues of significant concern to Nigerians.

“Please campaign based on issues that are of significant concern to Nigerians. Avoid the spread of false and fake news, personal attacks and insults,” he said.

He also urged candidates and their supporters to promote respect and tolerance for differing opinions, ensure decency and civility in public discourse, and comply with the spirit and letter of the National Peace Accord.