Political parties and presidential and National Assembly candidates on Tuesday signed the first National Peace Accord on issue-based campaigns ahead of the 2027 general elections, pledging to reject violence, hate speech, misinformation, personal attacks and other conduct capable of undermining the electoral process.
The accord was signed in Abuja at a ceremony organised by the National Peace Committee in partnership with The Kukah Centre, barely 24 hours before the statutory commencement of public campaigns and rallies for the elections.
The event brought together the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof Joash Amupitan; political party leaders; presidential candidates; National Assembly candidates; Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu; and representatives of the diplomatic community, among other stakeholders.
Those who signed the accord included President Bola Tinubu, represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume; the Nigeria Democratic Congress presidential candidate, Peter Obi; the Social Democratic Party candidate, Adewole Adebayo; and the African Action Congress candidate, Omoyele Sowore.
Others included the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Nentawe Yilwatda; presidential candidates of the Peoples Redemption Party and Labour Party, Donald Duke and Chibuzor Okereke; Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin; PRP National Chairman, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed; federal and state lawmakers; party leaders and other candidates.
The ceremony also featured goodwill messages from members of the diplomatic community, including the European Union Ambassador to Nigeria, Gautier Mignot, and the Ambassador of Switzerland to Nigeria, Patrick Egloff.
However, some major political figures, including former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, were absent.
Atiku is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, while Makinde is the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples’ Movement.
The Chairman of the National Peace Committee and former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd.), was represented at the event by former Chief of Defence Staff, General Martin Agwai (retd.).
The accord was signed against the backdrop of heightened political activities ahead of the 2027 elections, with issues including the economy, insecurity, unemployment, poverty, infrastructure deficits and the credibility of the electoral process expected to dominate campaigns.
According to INEC’s revised timetable, the presidential and National Assembly elections will hold on January 16, 2027, while the governorship and State House of Assembly elections are scheduled for February 6, 2027.
Tinubu Urges Issue-Based Campaigns
Speaking through Akume, President Tinubu urged political parties and candidates to place national interest above personal and partisan ambitions.
He warned that the contest for political power must not become a do-or-die affair, urging candidates to avoid exploiting ethnic and religious sentiments to mobilise voters.
Tinubu said the 2027 campaign should focus on competing ideas, policies and programmes capable of addressing the challenges confronting Nigerians.
“Signing this peace accord is a solemn pledge to the Nigerian people that we, as leaders, will put the nation’s interests above personal or partisan ambitions,” he said.
The President acknowledged that political campaigns would naturally involve disagreements and intense competition but maintained that political differences should never threaten national unity.
“It is natural during campaigns to disagree as opponents and advocate competing governing missions for our country. We may exchange occasional political jabs, but as members of the same household, the same national family, we must never resort to divisive and primordial sentiments of ethnicity or religion as tools for seeking power,” he said.
Tinubu urged political actors to campaign on policies and offer Nigerians competing solutions to the country’s challenges.
“Let us campaign on superior ideas. Let us debate issues and promote the best policies to expand opportunities for our people,” he added.
The President said the APC was committed to the provisions of the accord and would reject violence, hate speech, misinformation, incitement and digital manipulation.
“Our party rejects violence, hate speech, the spread of misinformation, including through artificial intelligence, and all forms of incitement, especially via social media,” he said.
Tinubu also commended the National Peace Committee for its interventions in Nigeria’s electoral process since 2014, saying the initiative had helped bring political actors together to publicly commit themselves to peaceful elections.
He also highlighted improvements in election management, particularly the adoption of technology by INEC, citing the Permanent Voter Cards, the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System and electronic accreditation processes.
INEC: Campaigns Are Not Wars
The INEC chairman, Amupitan, described the signing as more than a symbolic ceremony, saying it provided an opportunity for political actors to establish the ethical boundaries of the 2027 contest before campaigns officially commenced.
He noted that Wednesday, August 19, marked the statutory commencement of public campaigns and rallies for the general elections.
“Before the first campaign flag is unfurled, before the first rally is staged, and before political rhetoric fills our public space, it is necessary that those who seek to lead this nation first gather to establish the ethical boundaries of their contest,” Amupitan said.
The INEC chairman said Nigerians expected political parties and candidates to use the campaign period to discuss national challenges rather than engage in personal attacks and inflammatory rhetoric.
He said information gathered through the National Peace Committee’s Election Security Information Hub had revealed what he described as an “alarming resurgence” of hate speech, toxic polarisation, coordinated misinformation and personality-driven political discourse.
Amupitan urged candidates to make the economy, security, infrastructure, healthcare, education and social inclusion central to their campaigns.
He likened elections to a competition for public office rather than warfare.
“Electoral contests in a constitutional democracy are not total wars; they are competitive job interviews before the electorate. Nigerians do not want insults; they want solutions,” he said.
He also warned political parties and supporters against premature declarations of victory and the circulation of unverified information on social media.
According to him, the growing use of artificial intelligence and digital platforms has created additional challenges through disinformation and foreign information manipulation.
Amupitan challenged presidential candidates, party leaders and campaign organisations to ensure that their supporters and online teams complied with the spirit of the accord.
“Leadership attained at the expense of public peace, institutional integrity, or human life is a hollow victory,” he warned.
The INEC chairman assured political parties that the commission had no preferred candidate and would provide a level playing field for all contestants.
He disclosed that INEC was preparing to deploy approximately 1.4 million ad hoc personnel for the 2027 elections across more than 176,000 polling units nationwide.
Amupitan said the commission was drawing lessons from recent off-cycle elections, including the governorship elections in Anambra, Ekiti and Osun states, to strengthen its preparations for 2027.
He, however, stressed that technology and administrative preparedness alone could not guarantee peaceful elections.
“We provide the pitch and the refereeing, but the quality of the game depends on the players,” he said.
Peace Committee: 30 Accords Facilitated Since 2015
Speaking on behalf of Abdulsalami, Agwai said the National Peace Committee had facilitated 30 peace accords since 2015, comprising five national-level agreements and 25 subnational accords.
He said the committee had also established faith-based peace structures in 23 states to complement its national peace-building efforts.
According to him, the issue-based accord was developed in response to the growing tendency of political campaigns to rely on sentiments, personal attacks and character assassination rather than manifestoes, policies and programmes.
Abdulsalami said the accord was intended to encourage candidates and parties to compete on ideas, debate respectfully, organise supporters peacefully, protect voters, respect electoral institutions and reject hate speech and misinformation.
He lamented the declining quality of political discourse in Nigeria.
“Over the years, political campaigns and rallies have neglected the significance of party manifestos and programmes, and created a platform for political parties to resort to name-calling, personal insults, and character assassination,” he said.
He explained that the provisions of the agreement were anchored on the Constitution, the Electoral Act and other relevant laws.
The former Head of State also disclosed that the National Peace Committee had established an Election Security Information Hub to monitor electoral offences and security developments and provide early warning and evidence-based analysis to stakeholders.
Obi Questions Need For Peace Accord
Obi said politicians should not require a peace accord before conducting themselves responsibly.
The former Anambra State governor argued that anyone seeking high public office should demonstrate exemplary conduct before being elected.
“We don’t even need to sign this. We’re seeking an office where we should be exemplary. You can’t answer ‘His Excellency’ without being an excellent person,” Obi said.
Asked whether he still had confidence in the accord following reports of violence during the recent Osun governorship election, Obi said he participated because he wanted to change the system from within.
“Because I want to change the process, I have to go through it, so I have to believe in it,” he said.
He maintained that the important issue was not the name given to the agreement but whether candidates would conduct themselves in a manner befitting the offices they sought.
“Whatever it is, whether we call it a justice accord or a peace accord, the personal conduct of the candidate must reflect the office he is seeking. His behaviour, his person, any day, any time, must reflect that office,” Obi said.
He urged candidates to make their campaigns responsive to the challenges facing Nigerians.
Obi also called for remembrance and accountability over deaths recorded during the recent Osun governorship election.
“Let us not forget those who died in ensuring that the election in Osun was achieved the way it went. We should visit them.
“We should condole with their families, and we should remain prayerful and conduct ourselves in a way that, in our democracy, nobody needs to die for an election,” he said.
Asked what concerned him most about the 2027 election, Obi identified the integrity of the vote.
“I don’t have any fear, except to say that, please, for the sake of the children of Nigeria, can we have an election where people’s votes will count?” he asked.
On sanctions for candidates who violate the accord, Obi said the electorate should punish them at the ballot box.
“The punishment is that Nigerians should not vote for them,” he said.
Sowore Dismisses Accord As ‘Ritual’
Sowore, however, expressed scepticism about the effectiveness of the peace accord, describing it as a ritual that would have little impact without enforceable consequences.
“I don’t have faith in it. I’m bringing faith to the system. Those are two different things,” he said.
He questioned the description of the recent Osun governorship election as peaceful, alleging that about 50 people died in connection with the poll.
“How can you say, in good conscience, that an election that led to the death of 50 citizens of any country is a peaceful election?” Sowore asked.
He also criticised INEC over the electronic transmission and uploading of results from the Osun election.
“As we speak, INEC is yet to complete the upload of all the election results three days after,” he alleged.
Sowore argued that signing an accord without effective sanctions could amount to little more than a ceremony.
“The people who signed the peace accord in Osun State killed 50 people after they signed the peace accord. So, if you meant anything at all, why would you sign the peace accord and then go and carry a gun after that and kill 50 people?” he said.
The AAC candidate called for what he described as a “justice accord”, arguing that political actors who violate agreements should face consequences.
He also questioned why the deaths allegedly recorded during the Osun election had not generated stronger political accountability.
“I don’t know why nobody is talking about these 50 people that died in Osun State. It’s like we have just sacrificed them to the gods of politics, and we should all go home,” Sowore said.
Police Promise Neutrality
Representing the Inspector-General of Police, the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of Operations, Umar Shehu, pledged that the police would provide security for voters, candidates and other participants throughout the electoral process.
He said the police were not interested in which candidate or party emerged victorious but in ensuring that eligible Nigerians could vote without intimidation.
“The Nigeria Police is not interested in who wins or loses but is interested and committed to a peaceful election where Nigerians of eligible age will exercise their franchise without fear,” Shehu said.
The police leadership urged political parties and their supporters to cooperate with security agencies and avoid actions capable of triggering violence before, during and after the elections.
IPAC Appeals For Restraint
The Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council, Yusuf Dantalle, also appealed to political parties, candidates, campaign councils and spokespersons to respect the terms of the accord.
He urged political actors to reject fake news, personal attacks and insults and instead promote tolerance, civility and constructive political debate.
With campaigns officially commencing, the accord places the responsibility for peaceful and issue-based political engagement on the candidates and parties, while also testing the ability of Nigeria’s political institutions and security agencies to enforce the rules governing the 2027 electoral process.