The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has urged journalists to familiarise themselves with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 to ensure accurate, responsible and credible coverage of the 2027 general elections.
The Kaduna State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Prof. Saidu Ahmed made the appeal on Sunday at a retreat organised by the Kano State Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ).
The three-day retreat rounded up on Sunday has the theme “2027 General Elections: Navigating Legal, Security and Ethical Challenges in the Media”.
Represented by an INEC supervisor, Malam Ahmed Musa, the REC charged the media on election reporting, legal framework, security and ethical boundaries.
Ahmed said journalists played a critical role in shaping public perception and could either contribute to nation-building or undermine national cohesion through irresponsible reporting.
“You can make or break even a nation, so it is always on you to try to make a nation, not to break a nation,” he said.
He urged journalists to situate their election reports within the new legal framework and understand the rights and limitations attached to media accreditation.
According to him, the Electoral Act 2026, signed into law by President Bola Tinubu on Feb. 18, 2026, introduced significant changes that would affect the conduct and reporting of the 2027 general elections.
Ahmed said Section 47 of the Act made the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) a legal requirement, while electronic transmission of polling-unit results had also become mandatory.
He said Section 60(6) prescribed penalties for presiding officers who deliberately obstructed the electronic transmission of results, while Section 62(9) provided severe punishment for returning or collation officers who intentionally collated or announced false results.
He said the new law had also abolished indirect voting in political party primaries, requiring parties to adopt direct primaries or consensus.
According to him, courts can no longer stop a primary election or electoral process through injunctions, as electoral disputes would be addressed after the relevant process.
Ahmed said journalists also needed to understand the various stages leading to the 2027 elections, including party primaries, nomination of candidates, publication of candidates’ lists, campaigns, pre-election litigation, election-day activities and post-election petitions.
He advised journalists to rely on INEC’s official channels of communication to avoid publishing unverified information.
“At the national level, the official communication channel is through the INEC Chairman and the National Commissioner in charge of voter education and publicity.
“At the state level, the official channel is the Resident Electoral Commissioner, who may delegate another official to communicate on behalf of the state office,” he said.
He cautioned journalists against treating WhatsApp messages, Facebook posts, voice notes, photographs or documents circulated by individual INEC staff or political party agents as official statements of the commission.
“An agent does not work for INEC. If it is not on the record from a named officer or a signed commission document, then it is not INEC speaking,” he said.
He stressed the need for proper verification before publication, noting that inaccurate reports could cause serious damage because false information could become difficult to correct once it gained public acceptance.
On media accreditation, he said journalists and media organisations must obtain accreditation before covering electoral activities.
He said applications would be made through the INEC Media Accreditation Portal, with media organisations expected to provide formal letters of introduction, details of journalists deployed and passport photographs.
According to him, the accreditation portal would open and close on dates to be announced by INEC and would automatically shut at the expiration of the deadline.
He said accreditation could be refused where the identity of a journalist or media organisation could not be professionally verified.
He then explained that accreditation granted journalists lawful access to polling units, collation centres and other designated electoral facilities, but stressed that accreditation tags were personal and non-transferable.
He urged journalists to wear their accreditation tags visibly throughout the electoral process.
He, however, cautioned journalists against entering voting cubicles, handling electoral materials, obstructing electoral officials or interfering with the conduct of elections.
“You don’t have access to the voting cubicle. We operate a secret ballot system. You cannot film a voter while casting a ballot because that amounts to revealing the voter’s choice,” he said.
Ahmed also advised journalists to photograph result sheets only after they had been completed, signed and posted as required.
He urged reporters to record relevant details, including polling-unit codes, names of officials and times of electoral activities, describing journalists’ notebooks as important evidence that could assist them in verifying and defending their reports.
Also, the Kano State Government in a message by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Alhaji Umar Faruk, urged journalists to strengthen development journalism and provide balanced reports on government policies and projects.
The SSG’s message presented by Mustapha Muhammad the Chief Press Secretary to Gov. Kabir Yusuf commended the leadership of the Correspondents’ Chapel for organising the engagement, describing it as an opportunity for journalists to reflect on their professional responsibilities and issues affecting society.
He said the theme of the retreat was timely, given the challenges associated with electoral reporting.
The SSG said journalists occupied a strategic position in society beyond reporting daily events, stressing that they had a responsibility to inform citizens, hold institutions accountable and provide platforms for governments to communicate their policies and programmes.
He urged journalists in Kano to strike a balance between robust scrutiny of government and responsible reporting of genuine development efforts.
According to him, development journalism should not be confused with government propaganda, but should involve investigating and reporting the impact, quality, beneficiaries and implementation of government policies and projects.
He listed education, healthcare, agriculture, youth empowerment, women’s development, employment, environmental protection, infrastructure and social investment as areas deserving sustained media attention.
Ibrahim urged journalists to go beyond reporting ceremonies and commissioning of projects by investigating whether such projects were serving their intended beneficiaries.
He said citizens had the right to know how public resources were being utilised and how government policies and projects affected their lives.
The SSG said constructive criticism remained an important part of journalism and could help governments identify and address citizens’ concerns.
He urged the media community in Kano to develop a stronger culture of development journalism, where government performance would be assessed based on tangible improvements in the lives of citizens rather than political sentiments.
Also speaking, the Kaduna State Commissioner for Information and Culture, Mr Ahmed Maiyaki, urged journalists to uphold professional ethics and strengthen political reporting ahead of the 2027 elections.
Maiyaki said journalists should understand that belonging to a political party did not necessarily prevent a person from participating in journalism but stressed the need for professional discipline and adherence to ethical standards.
He said journalists should be prepared to uphold professional ethics even when doing so could expose them to pressure or other consequences.
Maiyaki also urged journalists to learn from the vibrancy of political reporting in Kano, describing the state as an important centre of political activity whose developments could have wider implications for the North.
He said responsible and professional political reporting was particularly important in Kano because of the intensity of political activities in the state.
The commissioner further highlighted the importance of Kano to Nigeria’s economic development, saying the state had demonstrated significant potential in attracting investment and creating business opportunities.
He urged journalists to give adequate attention to economic and development issues alongside political reporting.
Chairman of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Kaduna Council, Mr Abdulgafar Alabelewa said journalists were critical stakeholders in the delivery of credible and acceptable elections.
He said the training had reminded journalists of their responsibility in ensuring that electoral processes were properly reported.
He urged journalists to prioritise their safety during the 2027 elections, stressing that no story was worth risking one’s life.
“It is the living that reports; it is not the dead or even the injured,” he said.
He also called on journalists to contribute to the peace and security of the country through responsible reporting.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Kano State Correspondents’ Chapel, Mr Murtala Adewale, said the retreat was organised to prepare members to effectively cover the 2027 general elections.
