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Friday, 30 October 2026Lagos · LondonUpdated 11:49 GMT

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2027 elections
Reported

Opposition coalition briefs Cardinal Onaiyekan on plan for a united front in 2027

Cardinal John Onaiyekan in red robes
Photo: Gugganij / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

A coalition of opposition parties working towards a united front for the 2027 elections has received the backing of Cardinal John Onaiyekan, the retired Catholic Archbishop of Abuja.

What happened

Leaders of the G100 coalition, made up of the national chairmen and secretaries of member parties, visited the cardinal at his residence on Thursday, 29 October 2026, according to a statement signed by Salihu Lukman on Friday. They briefed him on their progress, including bringing in more parties and setting up ways of resolving disagreements among members.

What the cardinal said

Onaiyekan reportedly said he was pleased that Nigerians would have credible choices at the polls in 2027, and argued that the country's problems can only be solved by leaders who are competent, honest and compassionate. The coalition thanked him and asked him to keep praying for the initiative.

The plan

The coalition says it is finalising three documents: a National Covenant for Democratic Renewal setting out its principles, a Framework for Opposition Unity describing how parties will work together, and a National Reform Programme setting out the policies a coalition government would pursue. These are expected to be endorsed at a second summit on Monday, 9 November 2026. The group says it will also visit other prominent Nigerians and foreign missions in the coming weeks.

Background

Opposition figures have long argued that a divided opposition makes it easier for the ruling APC to win. Atiku Abubakar of the ADC and Peter Obi of the NDC are both running for president, and it is not yet clear what role, if any, either will play in the coalition.

More gist

2027 electionsReported
A glass ballot box
Stock image: National Museum of American History / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain

INEC official says some registration officers put AI-generated photos into voter register

INEC's ICT director, Lawrence Bayode, has reportedly admitted that some registration officers with system access entered AI-generated and poor-quality photos into the preliminary voter register. He said INEC knows how it happened but not why, and that the register is still being cleaned up before certification in December.

Read more

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reportedly admitted that artificial intelligence-generated photos found their way into Nigeria's preliminary voter register, and has blamed some of its own registration officers.

What was said

Speaking on Arise Television, in comments reported on Friday, 30 October 2026, INEC's Director of Information and Communication Technology, Dr Lawrence Bayode, said some registration officers who had login access to the registration system introduced irregularities. He said some of the photos were AI-generated while others came from poor-quality registration, and that the problem was found in states across the country. He reportedly said the commission knew what the officers did and how they did it, but did not know why.

How it was found

Bayode said INEC detected the problem by checking the database with its Automated Biometric Identification System, which compares faces and fingerprints to find duplicates and suspicious entries. He did not say how many records were affected.

Background

INEC published the preliminary register online on 26 October, and social media users quickly shared screenshots of suspicious photos, including some from Edo State, as well as complaints about duplicate entries and missing names. INEC said on 27 October that it was examining and correcting the records, and that the online register was not final.

What happens next

The commission says the register is still going through verification and correction, and that the final register is due to be certified on 15 December 2026. Bayode said INEC is working under pressure to finish the clean-up within the legal deadline. Opposition parties and civil society groups have called for a thorough audit before the January 2027 elections.

2027 elections
Pat Utomi speaking at a podium
Photo: Edirin247 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Utomi says an Obi government would aim for ₦500 to the dollar

NDC chieftain Pat Utomi has reportedly said Peter Obi's economic plan would aim to strengthen the naira to ₦500 per dollar, from about ₦1,350 today. He claimed this would sharply cut food and fuel prices, but the party has not said how long it would take.

Read more

Political economist Pat Utomi, a leading figure in the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has reportedly said that a Peter Obi government would work towards an exchange rate of ₦500 to the dollar.

What he said

In a post on X reported on Friday, 30 October 2026, Utomi said the target would be part of Obi's economic agenda. He argued that the naira could be strengthened from its current rate of about ₦1,350 to ₦500 per dollar through investment in security, electricity and roads, together with market reforms. He also projected large falls in the prices of everyday goods, claiming for example that a 50kg bag of imported rice could drop from about ₦55,000 to ₦27,500 and a loaf of sliced bread from ₦1,750 to ₦800.

The questions

The NDC has not said how long such an improvement would take, or what monetary and fiscal steps would be used to achieve and sustain it. Reaching ₦500 would require the naira to gain about 63 per cent against the dollar. The naira traded at about ₦1,347 on the official market and around ₦1,385 on the parallel market at the end of last week. No independent economists or government officials had responded to the target at the time of the report.

Background

The exchange rate has been one of the biggest economic issues since the naira was floated in 2023, when it weakened sharply. The Tinubu government says its reforms have stabilised the currency, while the opposition argues that the weaker naira has driven up living costs. Utomi, who once ran for president himself, is a long-time ally of Obi.

How people reacted

Obi's supporters welcomed the promise, while critics described it as unrealistic and questioned how it could be achieved without large reserves.

2027 elections
Rochas Okorocha in a white kaftan and cap
Photo: Flowrymz / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Okorocha calls Obi's one-term pledge a 'dangerous gamble' and backs Tinubu

Former Imo governor Rochas Okorocha has reportedly described Peter Obi's promise to serve only one four-year term as a dangerous gamble for the South East. Speaking on television, he urged the region to choose its alliances carefully and backed President Tinubu's re-election.

Read more

Former Imo State governor Rochas Okorocha has criticised Peter Obi's plan to serve a single four-year term if elected president, reportedly calling it a dangerous gamble.

What he said

Speaking on a Channels Television politics programme on Thursday, 29 October 2026, Okorocha is said to have questioned whether Obi's one-term model would work and urged the South East to be careful and strategic in choosing political alliances rather than backing what he described as risky options. He also backed President Bola Tinubu's re-election, arguing that the President had not acted against the interests of the Igbo people and was a more reliable choice for the region.

Background

Obi, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, has promised to serve only one term, a pledge his supporters say shows he is not driven by personal ambition. Critics, including Works Minister David Umahi, have argued that the South East should aim for eight years in power like other regions. Okorocha's comments came on the same day a Federal High Court ordered INEC to recognise him as the APC candidate for the Imo West Senate seat in place of Governor Hope Uzodimma, and former APC chairman Abdullahi Ganduje visited him to congratulate him.

How people reacted

Obi's supporters dismissed the comments as politically motivated, while APC supporters shared the clip widely. The Obi campaign had not responded at the time of the report.

What happens next

The debate over whether the South East should back Obi or Tinubu is likely to grow as both camps campaign across the region.

2027 electionsReported
Peter Obi
Photo: VOA / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain

Obi tells Ebonyi town hall Nigerians should not vote for leaders who stay at home while people suffer

NDC presidential candidate Peter Obi has reportedly told a town hall in Ebonyi State that voters should reject candidates who do not know the communities they want to lead. He said leadership should come from the people's demand, not be imposed on them.

Read more

Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), took his campaign to Ebonyi State on Thursday, 29 October 2026, where he reportedly told a town hall meeting that Nigerians should not vote for politicians who stay in their homes while ordinary people suffer.

What he said

According to reports, Obi said some of the people seeking the presidency could not find places such as Abakaliki, Ikwo and Nkalagu on a map, and did not understand the problems facing people in those communities. He argued that leaders must engage directly with citizens and listen to their needs, and said leadership should come from the demand of the people rather than being supplied to them by a few. The meeting was organised to hear residents' concerns first-hand.

Background

The Ebonyi visit came a day after Obi's town hall in Nasarawa State, where he said election riggers would be jailed under his government, and on the same day Oyo governor Seyi Makinde told a meeting in Enugu that his team had been warned against campaigning in the South East because it is seen as Obi's stronghold. Obi, a former Anambra governor, won most of the South East in 2023 as the Labour Party candidate and is now running with Rabiu Kwankwaso on the NDC ticket.

How people reacted

Supporters shared clips from the meeting widely online. Some commenters claimed that tricycle operators were restricted around the venue, but these claims have not been confirmed. The APC and other parties have not responded to his latest remarks.

What happens next

Obi is expected to continue his tour of the South East and North Central in the coming days as campaigning for the January 2027 elections intensifies.