Hate Speech, Threats During Campaigns Attract ₦10m Fine, 12 Months Jail – INEC

Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Chairman Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan

Hate Speech, Threats During Campaigns Attract ₦10m Fine, 12 Months Jail – INEC

The electoral commission says inflammatory rhetoric crosses into intimidation when it incites ethnic or religious hostility, as political actors ramp up campaign activities ahead of the 2027 general elections.

ABUJA, Nigeria – The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned politicians and political parties against using abusive, inflammatory, or threatening language during campaigns for the 2027 general elections, cautioning that offenders risk heavy financial penalties and possible imprisonment under the Electoral Act 2026. INEC’s Chief Press Secretary and Media Adviser to its Chairman, Adedayo Oketola, in a telephone interview on Sunday, said campaign rhetoric crosses the legal threshold into electoral intimidation the moment it moves beyond robust partisan debate or policy critique and enters the realm of coercion, hate speech, or the threat of harm. He cited Section 96 of the Electoral Act 2026, which states: “A political campaign or slogan shall not be tainted with abusive language directly or indirectly likely to injure religious, ethnic, tribal or sectional feelings.” The law further prohibits “abusive, intemperate, slanderous or base language, insinuations, innuendoes designed or likely to provoke violent reaction or emotions” in political campaigns. According to Oketola, rhetoric becomes punishable intimidation when it incites ethnic, religious, or regional hostility through language explicitly designed to provoke violent emotions or target specific groups. He explained that campaigns transition into outright intimidation when they threaten force or violence—whether by directly or indirectly warning voters, candidates, or electoral officials of physical harm, economic reprisal, or social ostracisation to compel or suppress support for a candidate. He stressed that political campaigns must not create an atmosphere of fear calculated to deter voter turnout or disenfranchise specific demographics.

Oketola disclosed that Section 96(7) of the Electoral Act 2026 prescribes severe statutory penalties for offenders. Candidates convicted of abusive campaign offences face a maximum fine of ₦5 million or imprisonment for 12 months, while political parties found liable risk a fine of ₦10 million for the first offence, and ₦2 million for each subsequent violation. While clarifying that INEC is not a security agency, Oketola explained that Section 95 of the Electoral Act 2026 explicitly prescribes the security architecture for political rallies in relation to the operational roles of the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and other security institutions. He noted that beyond inter-agency security coordination, INEC is statutorily empowered to monitor political campaigns and enforce compliance with the Code of Conduct for Political Parties.

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The warning comes amid a fresh wave of threats by political office holders against dissenting voters, as parties intensify preparations for the 2027 elections. Among the most prominent cases is that of Osun East Senator, Francis Adenigba Fadahunsi, who was invited and questioned by the Nigeria Police Force over a viral video in which he was heard telling All Progressives Congress (APC) supporters in Ilesa, “Until the day of election, when you see any Accord party member here in Ilesa, kill them.” Governor Ademola Adeleke rejected his media office’s subsequent clarification, describing the remarks as a national security threat and demanding his arrest. Fadahunsi later claimed the video was AI-generated and that his statement was metaphorical—a “call to kill by votes.” In the Federal Capital Territory, the Chairman of Kuje Area Council, Samuel Danjuma Shekwolo, stirred controversy after warning residents who do not support the APC to relocate ahead of 2027. Amnesty International Nigeria condemned the remarks as a “call to violence” and an attack on freedom of association. In Borno State, the Commissioner for Youth and Sports Development, Sainna Buba, threatened that those who refuse to support the APC in 2027 “will be flogged,” while separately warning that anyone who crossed the ruling party would have a finger broken. In Yobe State, the state chairman of the APC, Alhaji Mohammed Gadaka, triggered widespread condemnation after urging married women to leave their husbands if the men stood in the way of their voting for the party—promising to personally settle the “new bride price” for any woman who ended her marriage on account of her loyalty to the party. He later withdrew the remark following public outcry. Other flashpoints include Kebbi State, where the Chairman of Gwandu Local Government Area, Alhaji Atiku Ahmad Mandiya, told supporters that anyone who spoke against Governor Nasir Idris “should be dealt with,” and Ebonyi State, where Governor Francis Nwifuru warned newly inaugurated local government chairmen that they would be removed from office if they failed to deliver their councils to the APC in 2027.

The International Republican Institute (IRI), in a pre-election assessment of Nigeria’s democratic environment, warned that persistent insecurity and election-related political violence are the biggest threats to Nigeria’s 2027 general elections. IRI President Daniel Twining stressed that where voters, candidates, and observers cannot participate without fear of violence or intimidation, technical improvements and legal safeguards have only limited effect. The IRI mission further warned that economic hardship, insecurity, and declining public trust in INEC pose significant threats to the credibility of the 2027 elections. It said grievances over the management of the 2023 presidential election continue to shape perceptions of INEC, while uncertainty over the implementation of new electoral provisions could deepen distrust. The mission recommended that INEC conduct more robust stress tests of its systems and mock elections to identify potential challenges with the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal. The National Peace Committee, through its Election Security Information Hub, recorded 2,510 election-related security incidents across the country in just 14 months, affecting at least 70 off-cycle elections, bye-elections and reruns since 2023. Zamfara, Borno, Kaduna, Niger, Benue and Plateau were identified as the states worst affected, with banditry, kidnapping and terrorism posing continuing threats to electoral activities.

Oketola insisted that electoral integrity cannot be preserved by INEC alone, describing it as a collective stakeholder duty. “The Nigeria Police Force and other security agencies have a clear duty to prevent the breakdown of law and order during political campaigns,” he said. He added that the media must actively play its watchdog role by calling out purveyors of incendiary statements, while traditional and religious leaders must also wade in, using their moral authority to encourage politicians to eschew inflammatory rhetoric and avoid provoking violence in the country. “Political campaigns should be platforms of competing ideas, not theatres of war,” Oketola said.