Atiku Demands INEC Forensic Audit Over Alleged 20 Million AI-Generated Voter Images

• Atiku Abubakar condemned INEC after the commission admitted that AI-generated images and other irregularities entered the voter register through its own registration officers
• The ADC presidential candidate called for a forensic audit and said more than 20 million AI-generated images may be involved in the compromised register
• Atiku accused INEC of shielding those responsible and threatened court action if the commission refused to disclose the full details of the breach

Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over eight years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international issues

FCT, Abuja - Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) after it admitted that AI-generated images and other irregularities found their way into Nigeria's voter register through the actions of its own registration officers.

Legit.ng reports that INEC's ICT Director explained how suspicious photographs entered the commission's voter registration database.

Atiku described the admission as a catastrophic failure that undermines the commission's ability to conduct a credible 2027 general election.

Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Presidential Campaign Council, made this known in a statement issued and made available to Legit.ng on Friday, October 30, 2026

Atiku demands answers from INEC

Atiku said INEC's acknowledgement that its officers abused the system they were trusted to operate was not matched by any willingness to identify or punish those involved.

He pointed to remarks attributed to Professor Joash Amupitan through Boyode Lawrence, in which INEC appeared to concede knowledge of how the register was tampered with but claimed ignorance of the motive.

"That is a disgraceful evasion, not an answer," Atiku said. "Even ordinary WhatsApp, Facebook and email accounts appear to have stronger security safeguards than those INEC's ICT director described on national television. How can the database holding the votes of millions of Nigerians be less secure than a personal social media account?"

He demanded that INEC name every officer involved in the breach, suspend and prosecute them, and preserve all voter records, image files, access logs and audit trails pending an independent forensic review.

He warned against any quiet administrative clean-up that would destroy evidence rather than expose wrongdoing.

Call for independent audit, contractor disclosure

Atiku said the scale of the alleged irregularities, with the possibility that more than 20 million AI-generated images could be involved, made an independent audit by accredited experts, political parties, civil society groups and international observers absolutely necessary. He said no disputed record should be certified until that process is complete.

He also pressed INEC on a separate concern: its refusal to disclose the identities of companies contracted to produce sensitive election materials.

Atiku argued that this secrecy was incompatible with transparent elections and called on the commission to publish the contractors' identities alongside the safeguards governing their work.

The ADC presidential candidate said he held President Bola Tinubu's government partly responsible for allowing the crisis to deepen by permitting INEC to avoid scrutiny.

He called on opposition leaders and the international community to add their voices to demands for full accountability.

"If INEC refuses to disclose the truth, we will go to court and compel it," Atiku said. "Every official found to have tampered with the register must be prosecuted."

NDC accuses INEC of planning to use AI

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that Peter Obi's party, the NDC, accused INEC of plotting to manipulate the 2027 elections through artificial intelligence.

The NDC National Publicity Secretary Osa Director questioned why INEC had not tested AI tools in off-cycle elections before the 2027 polls.

The NDC called on Nigerians and the international community to oppose what he described as a threat to electoral integrity.