Electoral Fraud Is Attack On Nigeria’s Sovereignty, CNPP Demands Independent Forensic Audit Of INEC ..Seeks prosecution of implicated officials, tougher electoral laws, warns against organised subversion ahead of 2027 polls

The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has declared that electoral fraud is an attack on Nigeria’s sovereignty and constitutional order, demanding an independent forensic audit of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), criminal prosecution of officials found culpable in voter registration irregularities and tougher legislation against organised electoral subversion ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The political parties’ coalition said the revelations by INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, SAN, concerning irregularities uncovered in the 2025/2026 Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise had exposed disturbing institutional weaknesses that could undermine public confidence in the forthcoming elections.

In a strongly worded statement issued on Tuesday and signed by its Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Comrade James Ezema, the CNPP described the disclosures made by the INEC chairman during a media briefing in Abuja on Monday, November 9, 2026, as a matter of grave national concern requiring immediate independent investigation and comprehensive institutional reforms.

According to the coalition, INEC disclosed that it had removed 1,608,660 invalid voter registration records, expunged the records of 873 verified deceased persons and identified 54 personnel across ten states allegedly involved in registration irregularities.

The CNPP said the figures should not be dismissed as routine administrative corrections, insisting that they raised fundamental questions about the integrity of INEC’s internal processes and its capacity to protect Nigerians’ constitutional right to freely elect their leaders.

It expressed particular concern over the reported deliberate circumvention of established registration procedures by some electoral personnel, warning that the ability of insiders to manipulate critical electoral processes without effective internal safeguards constituted a serious threat to the credibility of the electoral system.

"How can Nigerians confidently trust an electoral institution whose own personnel can admittedly manipulate critical registration procedures without effective preventive controls detecting and stopping such misconduct?" the coalition queried.

The CNPP maintained that the revelations went beyond individual misconduct, exposing what it described as potentially deeper institutional failures within the electoral commission.

It argued that a credible electoral management body should possess effective internal mechanisms capable of preventing unauthorised alterations, detecting suspicious registration activities in real time and identifying personnel responsible for violations before irregularities become embedded in the national electoral database.

The coalition consequently challenged INEC to publicly explain how the irregularities occurred, why its monitoring systems failed to detect them promptly, how long the violations persisted and what concrete measures had been introduced to prevent a recurrence.

On the 54 personnel identified across ten states, the CNPP demanded that independent investigative and law enforcement authorities be involved in determining the full extent of the alleged misconduct.

It warned against resolving potentially criminal activities through internal administrative procedures alone, insisting that anyone found to have deliberately manipulated electoral records, abused official authority or colluded to compromise the registration process must face criminal investigation and prosecution in accordance with the law.

The organisation further called for investigations into whether the implicated personnel acted independently or operated within wider networks involving political actors, intermediaries and other interests seeking to compromise the electoral system.

"No individual should enjoy immunity because of his or her position, political connections or institutional affiliation," the CNPP declared, adding that Nigerians deserved transparent investigations, public accountability and justice rather than official assurances followed by silence.

Technology Cannot Replace Institutional Integrity

Addressing INEC’s proposed technological interventions, including stronger biometric authentication, application-controlled photograph capture and the adoption of an Artificial Intelligence Governance Framework, the CNPP cautioned that technological innovation alone could not guarantee credible elections.

It argued that technology was only as reliable as the people, procedures and accountability mechanisms governing its deployment.

According to the coalition, introducing additional applications, biometric tools and artificial intelligence systems without independent monitoring and enforceable safeguards could create new opportunities for manipulation if the underlying institutional weaknesses remained unresolved.

It therefore urged INEC to publish its AI governance framework, subject its digital infrastructure to independent cybersecurity and integrity assessments, establish transparent audit trails and ensure that no individual official had unchecked authority to alter or manipulate critical electoral records.

The coalition also called for the resolution of inherited irregularities dating back to previous voter registration exercises between 2011 and 2023, noting that the latest clean-up had reportedly not addressed all outstanding problems in the national register.

It insisted that Nigerians must not be expected to accept claims that the voters’ register had been sanitised without independently verifiable evidence.

The CNPP equally warned that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), despite its importance in strengthening voter accreditation and preventing multiple voting, could not guarantee the integrity of the entire electoral process.

It noted that electoral manipulation could occur at different stages, including voter registration, party primaries, candidate nomination, ballot production, deployment of election materials, accreditation, voting, collation, transmission and declaration of results.

It consequently challenged INEC to demonstrate its capacity to prevent, detect, interrupt and report electoral fraud across every stage of the democratic process rather than concentrating primarily on detecting violations after they had occurred.

CNPP Wants Electoral Rigging Treated As Treason-Related Offence

In what could become a major legislative debate ahead of the 2027 elections, the CNPP called on the National Assembly to undertake comprehensive reforms of existing electoral crime legislation, including consideration of classifying deliberate, organised and large-scale electoral subversion as a treason-related offence or creating a distinct offence of equivalent gravity.

The coalition argued that elections were the constitutional instruments through which Nigerians exercised their sovereign authority to determine who governs them.

Citing Section 14(2)(a) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which provides that sovereignty belongs to the people, the organisation maintained that anyone who deliberately manipulates election results, compromises electoral officials, falsifies electoral records or conspires to fraudulently impose public officeholders attacks the foundation of constitutional democracy.

It described such conduct as an unconstitutional seizure of the people's mandate and a direct assault on the legitimacy of public authority.

The CNPP, however, emphasised that any proposed legislation must clearly distinguish deliberate and organised electoral criminality from administrative mistakes, genuine procedural errors, legitimate political activities and ordinary electoral disputes.

It also stressed the need to preserve constitutional guarantees of fair hearing, due process and independent judicial determination.

"Nobody should be allowed to steal the sovereign mandate of millions of Nigerians and face consequences that are weaker than those prescribed for serious attacks against the constitutional order," the statement declared.

The coalition further maintained that organised electoral fraud involving electoral officials and candidates sponsored by political parties must attract sufficiently severe legal consequences.

Raises Concerns Over INEC's Impartiality, Early Voting

Beyond voter registration irregularities, the CNPP raised concerns over INEC’s handling of politically sensitive party leadership disputes and judicial matters, particularly the controversy involving the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

While acknowledging the Commission’s obligation to comply with authentic judicial decisions, the organisation insisted that such compliance must be guided by impartiality, consistency and transparency.

It urged INEC to establish clear and publicly accessible procedures for receiving, authenticating, reviewing and implementing court orders affecting political parties and electoral participation.

The coalition warned against administrative uncertainty, unexplained delays and selective interpretation of judicial decisions, insisting that all political parties must be treated equally regardless of their political influence or relationship with those in government.

The CNPP also called on the National Assembly to revisit INEC’s proposal for early voting by essential election-duty personnel, including journalists, electoral officials and security personnel whose professional responsibilities may prevent them from voting at their designated polling units on election day.

It said a legally sound framework was necessary to guarantee their constitutional voting rights without compromising ballot secrecy, transparency and electoral security.

Ten Demands To Safeguard 2027 Elections

Outlining its demands, the CNPP called for an independent forensic and administrative audit of INEC’s voter registration processes, digital infrastructure, internal controls and supervisory mechanisms, covering both historical and current registration records.

It also demanded independent criminal investigations into the 54 personnel identified by INEC, publication of a comprehensive report detailing the irregularities and institutional weaknesses uncovered, and appropriate opportunities for political parties, civil society organisations, accredited election observers and qualified technical experts to independently scrutinise the integrity of the final voters’ register.

Other demands include real-time fraud detection mechanisms, independent cybersecurity and operational assessments of BVAS and other critical electoral technologies, stronger electoral crime legislation, comprehensive institutional reforms covering staff recruitment and supervision, transparent implementation of judicial decisions and legislative intervention to establish an early-voting framework for essential election-duty personnel.

The coalition insisted that the credibility of the 2027 general elections must be secured well before election day rather than negotiated after the people's mandate has allegedly been compromised.

'Nigeria Cannot Afford Another Compromised Electoral Cycle'

The CNPP warned that Nigeria could not afford another electoral cycle characterised by uncertainty, institutional distrust and impunity for those who undermine the democratic process.

It said public confidence in INEC could not be secured through press conferences, declarations of commitment or announcements of new technological interventions, but through demonstrable integrity, transparency, preventive capacity and accountability.

"The ballot is the people's instrument of sovereignty. Stealing it is an attack on the people, an assault on democracy and a subversion of the constitutional order," the coalition declared.

It called on INEC, the National Assembly, law enforcement agencies, political parties, civil society organisations and Nigerians committed to democracy to rise to the responsibility of protecting the electoral process.

"The time for cosmetic electoral reforms is over. The time for institutional accountability is now," the CNPP stated.

The organisation reaffirmed its opposition to the normalisation of electoral manipulation, insisting that the people's mandate must remain inviolable and that deliberate electoral fraud must be prevented, promptly detected, independently investigated and appropriately punished.

Signed:

Comrade James Ezema, 

Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP).

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