A journalist and civil society advocate, Abdullahi Haruna Haruspice, has called on the Nigerian government to criminalize the spread of fake artificial intelligence (AI)-generated content ahead of the 2027 general elections.

He made the appeal during a briefing in Abuja on Wednesday.

Haruspice raised serious concerns over what he described as the increasing and dangerous misuse of AI tools to target Nigerian political leaders and private individuals.

To curb the trend, he urged the federal government and security agencies to take urgent action by criminalizing the production and dissemination of such content, including “recognizing AI-generated blackmail as a national security threat and classifying it as a form of cyber-terrorism.”

“What was once considered science fiction has now become a credible and immediate threat to Nigeria’s democratic stability, especially as the nation approaches the 2027 general elections,”he stated.

His comments come amid ongoing controversy involving the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Joash Amupitan, over an alleged partisan message circulated on X. The post had sparked calls for his resignation.

However, INEC, in a recent statement, dismissed the message as fabricated and fake.