Opposition presidential candidate Peter Obi warned that attempts to manipulate results in the 2027 general elections would face strong resistance, urging supporters to defend their votes at polling units.
Speaking at a town hall meeting in Port Harcourt, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate said voters would no longer tolerate intimidation. “Coming into the 2027 election, nobody will intimidate us again at the polling unit. Forget all these noises,” Obi said.
He noted that polling units typically have no more than five officials for an average of 40 to 50 voters. “There’s no way five people will intimidate 50 people. And we will make sure we have coordination to ensure that such intimidation does not arise,” he added.
Obi also addressed potential interference with the Independent National Electoral Commission’s result viewing portal, known as IReV. “They will try to manipulate the IReV, but it won’t be easy this time around. There will be so many IReVs; if their own doesn’t work, our own will work,” he said.
“If it has glitches, we will give them a new one that has no glitches, because by allowing them to continue, the glitches will glitch our lives,” Obi continued, stressing that every valid vote must count.
The former Anambra state governor, who contested the 2023 presidential election, declared that attempts to suppress votes would be met with firm opposition, saying supporters were prepared to protect the process.
