The African Democratic Congress has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission to review its criteria for appointing university lecturers and other academics as Returning and Collation Officers for the 2027 general elections.

The party made the call in a statement issued on Monday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, following a report that more than 600 senior lecturers from public universities across Northern Nigeria had endorsed President Bola Tinubu for the 2027 presidential election.

The ADC said the reported endorsement raised concerns about electoral credibility and potential conflicts of interest, particularly because university lecturers and vice-chancellors had routinely been appointed to collate election results and declare winners.

The party, however, acknowledged that academics, like other Nigerians, had a constitutional right to support or endorse political candidates.

It argued that such individuals should not subsequently be entrusted with determining the outcome of an election involving a candidate they had publicly supported.

“You cannot campaign for a candidate and then be entrusted with counting the votes and declaring winners in the same election that your candidate is contesting in,” the party said.

The ADC urged INEC to establish and publish clear criteria for the appointment of Returning and Collation Officers, including provisions to disqualify academics and other prospective officials who had publicly endorsed candidates, participated in partisan political activities or demonstrated an obvious political affiliation.

The party also called on the electoral commission to publish the names of proposed Returning and Collation Officers sufficiently ahead of the elections.

According to the ADC, such disclosure would enable political parties and members of the public to identify and raise legitimate concerns about possible conflicts of interest before the elections.

The party said the credibility of the electoral process depended not only on the conduct of voting but also on the neutrality of officials responsible for administering, collating and declaring the results.

“The integrity of an election does not begin when the first ballot is cast. It begins with the neutrality of the people entrusted to administer, collate, and declare its outcome,” the ADC said.

“Nigerians must never be placed in a position where those who have publicly chosen a side are subsequently presented as neutral arbiters of the contest,” the party added.

The statement was signed by Bolaji Abdullahi, National Publicity Secretary of the African Democratic Congress.