Channels Television journalist and presenter Seun Okinbaloye has clarified his controversial warning that Nigeria’s 2027 general election was already being rigged, insisting that his comments were directed at alleged irregularities in the voters’ register and not any political party or candidate.

Okinbaloye gave the explanation on Sunday during Sunday Politics, following reactions to his closing remarks on Friday’s edition of Politics Today, where he warned that the process of manipulating the 2027 election had already begun.

Addressing the controversy, the broadcaster said he had neither named a political party nor accused any candidate or identified an individual allegedly sponsoring electoral manipulation.

“In my warning, I didn’t name any political party, accuse any candidate, and identify any sponsor. I only said 2027 election is already being rigged through fake voter register,” he said.

He urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to urgently investigate concerns surrounding the preliminary voters’ register and remove invalid or questionable entries before the 2027 elections.

During his earlier broadcast, Okinbaloye had warned that electoral manipulation could take place long before election day if weaknesses in the voter registration system were not addressed.

He specifically raised concerns about alleged fake voter records, underage registrations, duplicate entries and other irregularities, calling on INEC to conduct a thorough review of the register.

The journalist argued that allowing questionable records to remain could undermine the credibility of the electoral process, particularly if safeguards failed to prevent invalid entries from being exploited during voting.

His remarks generated considerable public debate, with some Nigerians interpreting the warning as an accusation against INEC or particular political interests.

However, during Sunday’s clarification, Okinbaloye maintained that his central concern was the integrity of the electoral process and the need for the electoral commission to address identified weaknesses before the next general elections.

The controversy comes amid scrutiny of INEC’s preliminary Register of Voters following revelations by the commission’s Director of Information and Communication Technology, Dr Lawrence Bayode, that some registration officials allegedly used their official access credentials to introduce questionable records, including photographs suspected to have been generated using artificial intelligence.

Bayode said the commission’s Automated Biometric Identification System helped identify irregularities in the database.

INEC has maintained that the preliminary register is undergoing verification and correction, with the public given an opportunity to identify questionable entries and submit claims or objections before the final register is certified.

The commission has said the verification and data-cleaning process is expected to be completed ahead of the final certification of the Register of Voters on December 15, 2026.

Okinbaloye’s intervention has therefore renewed attention on the need for transparency in the voter registration process as preparations continue for the 2027 general elections.