Imagine scrolling through your social media feed on a quiet evening in 2027, and there it is: a video of a leading political candidate appearing to promise something scandalous, or perhaps confessing to corruption. Your heart races. You share it in anger. Later, you learn it was a deepfake—a piece of synthetic media generated by artificial intelligence, designed to deceive you. This scenario is no longer science fiction. It is one of the defining threats to democratic elections in our time, and it is precisely what a new webinar from the PUNCH Media Foundation seeks to confront. The virtual event, themed “AI, Misinformation and Nigeria’s 2027 Elections: Safeguarding the Truth, Protecting the Vote,” is scheduled for Wednesday, 11 November 2026, at 11:00 am. It will be led by two of the most important figures in Nigeria’s electoral and security architecture: the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, and the Independent National Electoral Commission National Commissioner, Mohammed Haruna. Together, they will bring the weight of their institutions to bear on a conversation that could determine whether Nigeria’s next general election is decided by facts or by fabricated realities. The webinar is not just another panel discussion; it is an urgent intervention aimed at promoting the responsible use of AI during the polls and safeguarding electoral integrity in a moment when technology is racing far ahead of regulation and public awareness.
The choice of leaders for this conversation is deliberate and deeply reassuring. Inspector-General of Police Olatunji Disu is not a man who sits behind a desk waiting for trouble to arrive. Born on April 13, 1966, on Lagos Island, Disu joined the Nigeria Police Force in 1992 and has spent over three decades in operational and leadership roles that have shaped him into one of the most respected security figures in the country. He rose to national prominence as Commander of the Rapid Response Squad in Lagos, where he spent six years rebranding his officers as “The Good Guys” and turning the unit into a model of proactive policing. Under his leadership, the RRS won the Best Anti-Crime Squad award in West Africa in 2016, and in 2019 he was named the Most Outstanding Anti-Crime Police Chief in West and Central Africa. His career has taken him from commanding the Intelligence Response Team—the elite unit that investigates high-profile crimes—to serving as Commissioner of Police in Rivers State and the Federal Capital Territory, and later as Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Force Criminal Investigation Department Annex in Alagbon, Lagos. In 2005, he led Nigeria’s first police contingent to the African Union Mission in Sudan, where he served as acting Chief of Staff in Darfur. But what makes Disu particularly compelling is the human side of his story. He is a judoka with a third-dan black belt who won a silver medal at the U.S. Open Judo Championship in 2022, competing in the under-100kg veteran category. He is also the patron of the Nigerian Police Judo Association. This combination of discipline, courage, and strategic thinking is exactly what is needed to address the complex, layered challenge of electoral security in the age of AI. During the webinar, Disu will speak on electoral security, public safety, threat verification, and inter-agency coordination—issues that are central to ensuring that misinformation does not spark violence or undermine the credibility of the 2027 polls.
Standing alongside him is Mohammed Haruna, a man whose entire career has been a bridge between journalism, public service, and electoral integrity. As the National Commissioner and Chairman of the INEC Information and Voter Education Committee, Haruna is the institutional voice responsible for ensuring that Nigerians receive accurate, official election information. But his path to this role is anything but ordinary. He began his journalism career with New Nigerian Newspapers Ltd., where he rose from reporter to Acting Editor and Managing Director, learning firsthand how the media can shape public understanding. He later co-founded the newsmagazine Citizen, a publication that became known for its independent and thoughtful reporting. In 1998 and 1999, he served as Chief Press Secretary to Nigeria’s Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, during one of the most delicate transitions in the country’s history—the move from military rule to democracy. That experience gave him a front-row seat to the power of communication in moments of national transformation. His academic credentials are equally impressive: a degree in Government from Ahmadu Bello University, a postgraduate diploma in Administration from Glasgow Polytechnic, a Master’s degree in Journalism from Columbia University in New York, and an Advanced Diploma in Management from Harvard University. When Haruna speaks about voter education and institutional responses to misinformation, he speaks from a rare vantage point that combines the instincts of a journalist, the discipline of a public servant, and the wisdom of someone who has seen how fragile public trust can be. In the webinar, he will address official election information, voter education, and how institutions like INEC can respond to the rising tide of AI-driven falsehoods without losing the confidence of the electorate.
The webinar’s depth, however, will not rest solely on the shoulders of the IGP and the INEC commissioner. A carefully selected group of resource persons will illuminate the conversation from multiple angles, ensuring that the discussion is grounded in real-world experience and practical solutions. Mayowa Tijani, the Director of Projects at the Cable Newspaper Journalism Foundation, is an award-winning development journalist and fact-checker who has covered four Nigerian presidential elections and was selected by the U.S. Department of State to cover the 2020 U.S. presidential election. His work with Agence France-Presse, X (formerly Twitter), and the Centre for Democracy and Development has made him a leading voice in disinformation research and policy. He holds a master’s degree with distinction in Media Practice for Development and Social Change from the University of Sussex, where he studied as a Chevening Scholar. Tijani will focus on AI, election reporting, newsroom standards, and editorial trust—issues that matter deeply for journalists who must navigate a landscape where a convincing fake can be created in seconds. Then there is Cynthia Mbamalu, the Director of Programmes at Yiaga Africa, a human and gender rights advocate with nineteen years of experience in democracy, political inclusion, and electoral integrity. She co-founded Yiaga Africa and played a pivotal role in the Not Too Young to Run movement, which successfully lowered the constitutional age requirements for elective office in Nigeria. She leads the #WatchingTheVote project, a data-driven initiative that promotes election integrity, and she manages community organising programmes for young people across Nigeria and West Africa. Her focus on electoral integrity, citizen trust, participation, and civic resilience will bring a grassroots perspective to the conversation, reminding everyone that the fight against misinformation is ultimately about protecting the agency of ordinary voters. Hannah Ajakaiye, the founder of FactsMatterNG, completes the panel. Her civic media non-profit uses social media to reach young and underserved audiences with fact-checking, media literacy, and civic education content. A JSK Journalism Fellow at Stanford University and a Reham al-Farra Memorial Journalism Fellow at the United Nations, Ajakaiye has worked as a reporter at The Nation and has led initiatives to counter disinformation about COVID-19 and elections through the Knight Fellowship Programme at the International Centre for Journalists. She will focus on frontline verification, synthetic content, and information integrity. The session will be moderated by Joel Nwokeoma, the Metro Editor of PUNCH Newspapers, who will ensure that these experts provide practical, actionable insights rather than abstract theory.
At its heart, this webinar is about a fundamental question: can Nigeria harness the enormous potential of artificial intelligence without allowing it to become a weapon against democracy? The discussants will examine how AI can be used to improve election coverage, streamline bureaucratic bottlenecks, and make information more accessible to voters. INEC, for instance, could deploy AI tools to process data faster, detect anomalies in voter registration, and communicate more effectively with the public. Journalists could use AI to sift through vast amounts of information, identify trends, and verify claims more quickly. Election observers could use machine learning to monitor polling stations and flag irregularities in real time. These are exciting possibilities. But the same technology can be turned against the electoral process. AI can generate hyper-realistic fake videos of candidates saying things they never said. It can create fabricated audio recordings that sound exactly like a trusted journalist or election official. It can flood social media with coordinated disinformation campaigns designed to confuse voters, suppress turnout, or incite violence. The webinar will therefore address the standards required to preserve editorial credibility when AI tools are deployed by newsrooms, electoral bodies, security agencies, and civil society organisations. It will explore the importance of human oversight—the idea that no algorithm should ever make a final decision about what is true or false without a human being taking responsibility. It will also provide participants with practical insights into identifying false and manipulated content, strengthening verification practices, and promoting accurate communication during electoral periods. Perhaps most importantly, the discussion will explore opportunities for collaboration among stakeholders. No single institution can solve the problem of AI-driven misinformation alone. The police need the media. The media need INEC. INEC needs civil society. Civil society needs technology companies. And all of them need the public. The webinar will be a space where these connections can be built, strengthened, and turned into concrete strategies for protecting the 2027 elections.
The PUNCH Media Foundation, which is organising this event, is the development arm of PUNCH Nigeria Limited, one of the country’s most respected media organisations. Established in 2019, the Foundation works to stimulate a just, inclusive, and thriving civic space through accountability journalism, digital journalism, public policy advocacy, and media development. Its mission is not simply to report on problems, but to solve them. Through the strategic use of media, technology, and advocacy, PMF drives sustainable social change in Nigeria, and this webinar is a perfect example of that mission in action. The Foundation understands that the greatest threat to democracy in the digital age is not just the spread of lies, but the erosion of the very idea of truth. When people can no longer agree on basic facts, elections become impossible to conduct fairly, because every result is dismissed as fake, every official is accused of manipulation, and every citizen retreats into an echo chamber of their own fears and suspicions. The stakes could not be higher. Nigeria is a country of immense diversity, energy, and potential, but its democratic future depends on the ability of its people to make informed choices. If AI is allowed to poison the information environment, the consequences will be felt not just at the ballot box, but in every aspect of national life—in the economy, in social cohesion, in the relationship between citizens and the state. That is why this webinar matters. It is not a niche conversation for tech experts or media professionals. It is a conversation for every Nigerian who cares about the future of their country. It is a conversation for young voters who are bombarded with content on TikTok and Instagram, for community leaders who are trusted sources of information in their neighborhoods, for civil servants who must implement electoral laws, and for ordinary citizens who simply want to cast their vote in peace, without being manipulated by forces they cannot see.
For those who wish to participate, the webinar is free, non-partisan, and open to all. It is an educational event designed to equip attendees with the knowledge and tools they need to navigate the complex information landscape of the 2027 election cycle. Registration is available at https://tinyurl.com/2027-Ai-Election-Webinar, and the session will take place virtually on Wednesday, 11 November 2026, at 11:00 am. Participants will leave with a deeper understanding of how AI-generated content affects public trust and information integrity, and with practical strategies for identifying false and manipulated content before it spreads. They will hear from leaders who have dedicated their lives to protecting democracy, and they will have the opportunity to ask questions, share concerns, and contribute to a national conversation that could shape the outcome of the next election. In a world where a single fabricated video can swing an election or spark a riot, the ability to verify information is not just a professional skill—it is a civic duty. The PUNCH Media Foundation webinar is a step toward building a culture of verification, accountability, and truth in Nigeria’s digital public square. It is an invitation to all of us to be more careful, more curious, and more courageous in the face of misinformation. The 2027 elections will be a test of Nigeria’s resilience in the digital age. But with the right knowledge, the right partnerships, and the right commitment to the truth, that test can be passed. The truth may not always be easy to find, but it is worth protecting. And in the end, protecting the truth is the same as protecting the vote.