Arise Television co-host Rufai Oseni has sparked intense debate online after sharing the results of an online civic opinion poll mapping out a hypothetical 2027 presidential election. The poll, which placed Peter Obi far ahead of his political rivals, drew swift criticism from social media users who questioned the methodology and real-world relevance of the data.
The Source of the Controversy
On Tuesday, September 15, 2026, Oseni shared a screenshot from the Nigeria Elections Intelligence System (NEIS) on his social media account, accompanied by the simple caption: “Polling.”
The shared graphic showed Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) commanding an overwhelming 87.4 percent of the counted responses. Trailing far behind were Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) at 5.1 percent, incumbent President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at 4.6 percent, and Oluseyi Abiodun Makinde of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) at 1.9 percent.
According to the screenshot, the figures were gathered from just over 2,500 counted responses. NEIS describes itself as an independent, non-partisan election intelligence platform that maps polling units and conducts pre-election civic surveys across Nigeria. However, the online exercise carries no official electoral weight.
Public Backlash and Criticism
The post quickly generated significant pushback. Many social media commentators argued that Oseni’s personal follower base is heavily populated by “Obidients” passionate supporters of Peter Obi. As a result, critics argued that any poll shared or engaged with on his platform would naturally skew in Obi’s favor, making the findings a reflection of his digital audience rather than the broader Nigerian electorate.
Other users highlighted the fundamental difference between virtual engagement and real-world elections, emphasizing that official outcomes are determined by physical voters casting ballots at polling units, not by online participants on social media platforms.
The Road to the 2027 General Elections
Despite the debate surrounding online surveys, preparations for the actual 2027 general elections are steadily gaining momentum. Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has already published the official list of presidential candidates, confirming that Tinubu, Obi, Atiku, and Makinde will represent their respective parties in the upcoming national contest.