LONDON — The Chairman of Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Joash Amupitan, has vowed not to accept any political or diplomatic appointments after leaving office, pledging strict institutional neutrality ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Speaking on Thursday at a Chatham House panel in London titled “Nigeria’s 2027 elections: Democratic trajectory and regional stability beyond the ballot”, Prof. Amupitan sought to draw a clear line between his administration and his predecessor, Mahmood Yakubu, who accepted an ambassadorial appointment to Qatar from President Bola Tinubu last November.
Pressed on whether he would resist future government patronage to protect the commission’s independence, Amupitan stated that public trust requires complete detachment from political rewards.
“I’m not going to accept any appointment from anybody because coming to serve here is based on trust,” he said. “I took an oath of allegiance, not only to be neutral, but to ensure that the conduct of the election is free, fair, and credible. It’s a national assignment.”
The INEC chief, a professor of corporate governance, added that after decades of public service, he intends to return to private enterprise upon completing his five-year mandate.
Security services foil bandit plot against poll workers
During the same engagement, Prof. Amupitan revealed that Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS) has arrested and begun prosecuting a group of bandits who plotted to attack National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members scheduled to serve as ad hoc election staff in 2027.
According to Prof. Amupitan, the plot was uncovered through joint intelligence under the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES).
“They were arrested, and the main confession was that the essence was to target the 2027 election and ensure that the election did not even hold,” he disclosed, noting that the suspects are currently facing prosecution at the Federal High Court.
To counter persistent insecurity, INEC has deployed an Election Risk Management (ERM) tool to map all polling units located within 500 metres of identified danger zones, enabling targeted preventive deployments by security forces.
Technological safeguards and 2023 reforms
Addressing the erosion of public confidence caused by result-transmission failures during the 2023 presidential vote, Prof. Amupitan outlined major operational and technological upgrades designed to prevent result manipulation at collation centres:
- Automated IReV Validation: INEC has introduced a new verification safeguard on the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal that automatically blocks the upload of polling unit results containing mathematical discrepancies or signs of over-voting.
- Reduced BVAS Load: To eliminate accreditation bottlenecks, the commission has lowered the maximum number of registered voters assigned to each Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) device from 1,250 to 850.
Professor Amupitan emphasized that delivering credible, peaceful elections in 2027 remains vital not only for Nigeria’s democratic consolidation, but for broader political stability across West Africa.
Add Comment