ABUJA, NIGERIA — The Savannah Centre for Diplomacy, Democracy and Development Council of the Wise, chaired by former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, has urged presidential candidates contesting the 2027 general elections to shun hate speech, inflammatory remarks, and violence in their campaigns, warning that the conduct of contestants will be crucial to ensuring peaceful and credible polls.
The Council made the call on Tuesday in Abuja during an advocacy engagement with the Peoples Redemption Party presidential candidate and former Cross River State Governor, Donald Duke . It urged him to ensure that his campaign was free from rancour and statements capable of inciting violence, as political tension has heightened with campaigns underway, raising concerns among some Nigerians that the poll could be marred by violence .
Justice Ariwoola, who heads the reconstituted 11-member Council that includes veteran actress Joke Silva and former University of Ilorin Vice Chancellor Prof Shuaibu Oba Abdulraheem, recalled Nigeria’s bitter electoral history, noting that elections since 1999 had been marred by violence, hate speech, rigging, vote-buying, and other malpractices . He particularly referenced the 2007 election, which the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua publicly admitted was flawed, and the 2011 election that recorded over 1,000 lives lost in mayhem across Northern States .
“The Council believes that the ability of Nigerians to once more prove the prophets of doom and our detractors wrong largely depends on the conduct of the Presidential contestants during the forthcoming 2027 general elections,” Ariwoola stated . “They owe it a duty to the Nigerian people to improve upon and consolidate the democratic successes so far achieved in Nigeria. It is worth repeating that candidates should avoid hate speeches, inflammatory comments and falsehood in their campaigns” .
The Council of the Wise was first established in 2014 with support from the MacArthur Foundation and reconstituted in June 2026 under the auspices of the Savannah Centre, founded by former Chief of Staff to the late President Muhammadu Buhari, Prof Ibrahim Gambari . The Council is expected to hold consultations with major national stakeholders, including President Bola Tinubu, opposition presidential candidates such as Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Seyi Makinde, security agencies, religious leaders, and traditional rulers to promote free, fair, and credible elections .
Ariwoola emphasized that presidential candidates must lead by example, compelling members of their parties and supporters to comply with electoral laws and guidelines issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission . He also urged candidates to focus their campaigns on issues affecting Nigerians rather than engaging in falsehood and inflammatory rhetoric .
The Council had earlier visited former President Olusegun Obasanjo, seeking his support in promoting peaceful elections, with Ariwoola recognising Obasanjo’s distinguished role as a “Peace-Loving Global Citizen” . The Institute of Security Nigeria has also rallied support for the initiative, describing it as a timely intervention to safeguard Nigeria’s democracy .
Ariwoola stressed that Nigerians expect the presidential campaign to focus on issues and problems confronting them in their daily lives, warning that failure to implement electoral reforms and address the triggers of election-related violence could continue to pose serious threats to subsequent general elections . He urged Nigerians to turn out en masse and vote to prove the prophets of doom and detractors wrong .
