Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde were conspicuously absent on Tuesday as major political parties and candidates signed the first National Peace Accord ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The agreement was signed in Abuja at a ceremony convened by the National Peace Committee in partnership with The Kukah Centre, a day before the commencement of public campaigns and rallies for the elections.
The candidates pledged to conduct issue-based campaigns and refrain from violence, hate speech, misinformation, personal attacks, incitement and other actions capable of threatening the peaceful conduct of the elections.
The event was attended by the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof Joash Amupitan; political party leaders and candidates; Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu; members of the diplomatic corps and other stakeholders.
President Bola Tinubu was represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume.
Among the presidential candidates who signed the accord were the Nigeria Democratic Congress candidate, Peter Obi; Social Democratic Party candidate, Adewole Adebayo; and African Action Congress candidate, Omoyele Sowore.
Others included APC National Chairman, Prof Nentawe Yilwatda; PRP and Labour Party presidential candidates, Donald Duke and Chibuzor Okereke, respectively; Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin; PRP National Chairman, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed; as well as several lawmakers, party leaders and candidates.
However, Atiku, who is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, and Makinde, the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples’ Movement, did not attend the ceremony.
The National Peace Committee Chairman and former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd.), was represented by former Chief of Defence Staff, General Martin Agwai (retd.).
The accord comes amid increasing political activity ahead of the 2027 elections, with the economy, insecurity, unemployment, poverty, infrastructure, healthcare and electoral credibility expected to feature prominently in campaign messages.
According to INEC’s revised timetable, presidential and National Assembly elections will take place on January 16, 2027, while governorship and State House of Assembly elections are scheduled for February 6.
Tinubu warns against politics of division
President Tinubu, in a speech delivered by Akume, urged politicians to place the national interest above personal and party ambitions and warned against treating the election as a battle for political survival.
He particularly cautioned candidates against using ethnicity and religion to mobilise support, urging them instead to campaign on policies and programmes.
“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,” Tinubu said.
The President acknowledged that political contests would naturally produce disagreements but said such differences should not be allowed to undermine national unity.
He said political parties should present competing visions for Nigeria while avoiding divisive rhetoric.
“Let us campaign on superior ideas. Let us debate issues and promote the best policies to expand opportunities for our people,” he said.
Tinubu said the APC was committed to peaceful elections and rejected violence, hate speech, misinformation, incitement and the misuse of artificial intelligence and social media to manipulate voters.
He commended the National Peace Committee for its role in promoting peaceful elections since 2014.
INEC: Nigerians want solutions, not insults
Amupitan said the signing of the accord was particularly significant because public campaigns officially begin today.
He said political leaders needed to define acceptable standards of conduct before rallies and campaign activities intensified.
“Tomorrow, Wednesday, August 19, 2026, marks the statutory commencement of public campaigns and rallies for the 2027 general election,” he said.
The INEC chairman said Nigerians expected politicians to use the campaign period to discuss the problems confronting the country rather than engage in personal attacks.
He disclosed that the National Peace Committee’s Election Security Information Hub had detected an “alarming resurgence” of hate speech, toxic political polarisation, coordinated misinformation and personality-driven political discourse.
Amupitan urged candidates to focus their campaigns on the economy, security, infrastructure, healthcare, education and social inclusion.
He described elections as a competition for public office rather than a war.
“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 against premature victory claims and the dissemination of unverified information online.
According to him, INEC is preparing to deploy approximately 1.4 million ad hoc personnel across more than 176,000 polling units for the 2027 elections.
The commission, he added, would draw lessons from recent off-cycle elections to improve its preparations.
Amupitan assured contestants that INEC had no preferred candidate and would provide a level playing field.
He, however, said the commission’s preparations 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.
Abdulsalami seeks issue-based campaigns
Agwai, who represented Abdulsalami, said the National Peace Committee had facilitated 30 peace accords since 2015, including five national and 25 subnational agreements.
He said the committee had also established faith-based peace structures in 23 states.
According to him, the latest accord was designed to redirect political campaigns towards manifestoes, policies and programmes while discouraging personal attacks and character assassination.
He said the agreement was anchored on the Constitution, the Electoral Act and other relevant laws, making it more than a symbolic political declaration.
Abdulsalami also disclosed that the committee had established an Election Security Information Hub to monitor electoral offences and security developments and provide early warnings to relevant stakeholders.
He urged candidates, parties and campaign organisations to respect opposing views, protect voters, reject hate speech and misinformation, and ensure peaceful mobilisation.
Obi backs accord but demands credible polls
Obi said politicians should ideally not require a peace accord to conduct themselves responsibly.
“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,” he said.
The NDC candidate said he participated because he wanted to change Nigeria’s political process from within.
“Because I want to change the process, I have to go through it, so I have to believe in it,” he said.
Obi urged candidates to make their personal conduct consistent with the offices they were seeking and to focus their campaigns on issues affecting Nigerians.
He also called for remembrance and accountability over those who died during the recent Osun governorship election.
His major concern ahead of 2027, he said, was whether Nigerians’ votes would count.
“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.
Obi said the electorate should punish politicians who violate the peace accord by voting them out of office.
Sowore: Peace accord lacks teeth
Sowore expressed scepticism about the effectiveness of the accord, describing it as a ritual without adequate enforcement mechanisms.
“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 election as peaceful, alleging that about 50 people died in connection with the poll.
Sowore also raised concerns over the pace of results uploading by INEC following the election.
He argued that political actors who violate the peace accord should face clearly defined sanctions and called for what he described as a “justice accord”.
According to him, signing an agreement without consequences for violations would not prevent political violence.
Police pledge neutrality
Representing the Inspector-General of Police, the DIG Operations, Umar Shehu, assured political parties and voters that the police would remain neutral and focus on securing the electoral process.
“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,” he said.
The police urged candidates and supporters to cooperate with security agencies and avoid actions that could provoke violence.
Similarly, the Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council, Yusuf Dantalle, called on political parties and candidates to respect the agreement.
He urged politicians to reject fake news, insults and personal attacks and instead promote tolerance, civility and constructive debate as the 2027 campaign season begins.
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