The Chartered Institute of Forensics and Certified Fraud Investigators of Nigeria (CIFCFIN) has urged all Nigerians, including the Nigeria Bar Association and Civil Society Organizations, to demand a forensically-tracked mandatory public stress test of INEC's technology. This test should be conducted no later than six months before the 2027 general elections, with the results broadcast live.
CIFCFIN's Founder and Chairman of the Governing Council, Iliyasu Gashinbaki, made this call during Democracy Day celebrations in Abuja on Friday. He also advocated for pre-election forensic vetting of academic certificates, birth records, and tax clearance certificates of political party candidates, well before the printing of ballot papers.
Gashinbaki assured that the Institute is prepared to help certify or authenticate the veracity of the electoral process. He called for forensic analysts to be embedded within INEC's results collation system to detect manipulations in real time. "Forensic deep fake detection experts must be engaged to counter AI-generated disinformation designed to mislead voters as well as the courts. Forensic evidence is the only language a captured judiciary cannot easily ignore," he said.
He emphasized that the accusations against the current political class regarding massive rigging in the just-concluded party primaries, the alleged building of a one-party state, the attempt to capture the judiciary, and the surreptitious attempt to compromise INEC are not mere conspiracy theories. According to him, these are known pathologies of democratic collapse that could lead to a failed state if allowed to persist into 2027.
"To ensure integrity, we demand mandatory real-time electronic transmission of results by INEC; a publicly forensically audited voters register, 90 days before voting; the immediate investigation by the National Judicial Council of judges who issue conflicting ex-parte orders; and a level playing field for all 18 political parties, free from any form of perceived manipulation," he advised.
He warned that without correcting these perceived problems, the 2027 elections will not appear credible. He also cautioned about loopholes in the 2026 Electoral Act, particularly sections that permit manual results tampering and delayed electronic transmission, urging the National Assembly to repeal those inputs immediately. Additionally, he called on the National Judicial Council to fast-track the investigation of judges suspected of political capture.
