The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Joash Amupitan, has dismissed allegations of political bias, declaring that his allegiance is exclusively to the Nigerian Constitution and the Electoral Act.
Amupitan made the declaration on Thursday during a high-level dialogue organised in partnership with the Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI).
Speaking during a discussion titled “Nigeria’s 2027 Elections: Democratic Trajectory and Regional Stability Beyond the Ballot,” the INEC chairman denied allegations that he was sympathetic to certain political interests.
He specifically dismissed claims that he operated an X account that allegedly expressed support for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) during the 2023 general elections, describing the allegation as digital impersonation.
He said an independent forensic review had been obtained, while the matter had been referred to the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Inspector-General of Police for investigation.
“My loyalty is solely to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Electoral Act.
“Every constitutional institution—including the Presidency, the National Assembly, and state governors—owes its primary loyalty to the Constitution and the rule of law,” he said.
Amupitan urged Nigerians to have confidence in his leadership and INEC’s ability to conduct free, fair and credible elections in 2027.
He acknowledged that the controversies surrounding the 2023 presidential election had significantly damaged public confidence in the commission.
“First and foremost, let me speak about what happened in 2023, which resulted in a significant trust deficit for INEC—damage so large that the Commission has not yet fully recovered from it,” he said.
The INEC chairman, however, said the commission had learnt lessons from subsequent off-cycle elections, including those in Anambra and Osun states, where results were declared the day after voting.
He added that INEC had introduced strict validation safeguards to prevent inaccurate results or figures indicating over-voting from being uploaded to its Result Viewing Portal (IReV).
Amupitan also pointed to operational improvements and new technical measures introduced by the commission to prevent a recurrence of the controversies that followed the 2023 elections.
Meanwhile, Nigerians living in the United Kingdom staged a protest outside Chatham House in London on Thursday, demanding that Amupitan address concerns over alleged irregularities in Nigeria’s voters’ register ahead of the 2027 general elections.
