ABEOKUTA — Cultural organisation and social enterprise, Unchained Vibes Africa, UVA has described the 2027 general elections as a democratic opportunity for Nigerians to choose their leaders, cautioning politicians and religious leaders against turning the process into a “war.”
UVA on Wednesday in Abeokuta, Ogun State, launched its 2027 elections integrity campaign with the premiere of an anthem titled “No Be War” and the release of an audio track, “Your Choice.”
The event was used to call for peaceful conduct and an end to divisive, ethnic and religious rhetoric ahead of the polls.
Speaking at the launch, UVA Founder and Director, Mr. Ayodele Ganiu, said the organisation was deploying music and storytelling to counter harmful political narratives.
According to Ganiu, “Your Choice” is a soulful, mid-tempo Afrobeats-R&B track aimed at countering political hate speech and toxic narratives ahead of the 2027 elections.
He also announced that the audio launch sets the stage for a short film scheduled for premiere in September 2026, featuring veteran Nollywood actors Yemi Solade, Tunji Sotimirin, Sam Uche Anyamele and Dr Pure.
Ganiu played different video clips of what he described as recent harmful and inciting rhetoric by some politicians, Islamic clerics and pastors in Nigeria. He lamented that national cohesion was being threatened by such unguarded speech.
Ganiu said: “As our nation prepares for the 2027 general elections, national cohesion is severely threatened by escalating political incitement and religious hate speech.
“On one hand, we see political actors inciting violence on the streets, only to slickly retreat into calling their directives ‘harmless political metaphors’ when real harm occurs.
“On the other hand, we face dangerous pulpit and podium polarisation from religious leaders across faiths. Our Islamic and Christian clerics are weaponising religion to divide us.
“Islamic clerics are mobilising religious bloc dominance by demanding exclusive ‘Muslim-Muslim tickets,’ labelling fellow citizens who are not Muslims as ‘infidels’ and preaching extreme rhetoric of pre-emptive subjugation by claiming religious authority to forcibly confine non-adherents to their homes and restrict them from public markets.
“Christian clerics are replacing civic duty with sectarian loyalty, elevating ‘kingdom identity’ over national citizenship, reducing complex democratic elections to binary headcount formulas and asserting from the pulpit that non-participation or voting against the Church amounts to ‘voting for Satan.’
“Whether framed as spiritual warfare or pre-emptive religious dominance, these toxic rhetorics reduce democratic choices to existential battles and turn neighbours against one another.
“We refuse to let such division define our future. Through music, narrative and storytelling, we are taking back the civic narrative.”
In their separate remarks, actor Yemi Solade, Associate Professor Tunji Sotimirin and Sam Uche Anyamele, threw their weights behind the campaign, even as they called on Nigerians — including leaders, followers, political actors and religious leaders — to promote national harmony and reject divisive rhetoric as the country inches closer to another major election.
UVA said the campaign will use music, film and grassroots engagement to promote issue-based politics and voter education ahead of 2027.
