The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, has warned electoral officials against partisanship, extortion, administrative negligence and ethical violations, insisting that staff must demonstrate absolute neutrality and integrity in the conduct of the 2027 General Election.
Amupitan gave the warning on Tuesday in Enugu during the South-East Zonal Interactive Meeting with Staff and Readiness Assessment for the 2027 General Election.
He said the credibility of the forthcoming elections would depend significantly on the conduct of electoral personnel at polling units, Registration Area Centres and other operational locations across the country.
The INEC chairman stressed that officials must carry out their responsibilities strictly in accordance with the law, irrespective of the interests of political parties, candidates or other individuals.
“Partisan leaning, administrative negligence, extortion, or compromised ethics will not be tolerated under my leadership,” he declared.
Amupitan reminded staff that Section 26 of the Electoral Act 2026 requires electoral personnel, including Electoral Officers, Presiding Officers, Returning Officers and participating security officials, to swear an oath of loyalty and neutrality.
He urged the officials to make compliance with the law their guiding principle in every decision taken before, during and after the elections.
“The question governing your actions must never be ‘Who will benefit from this decision?’ The question must always be ‘What does the law require me to do?’” he said.
The chairman said the Commission was strengthening its operational systems, staff training, logistics and technological infrastructure to support the delivery of credible elections across the country.
He disclosed that INEC was combining physical training with new information and communications technology-based tools to prepare both permanent and ad hoc personnel for their responsibilities during the elections.
On logistics, Amupitan said the Commission had procured and dispatched new operational pickup vehicles to state offices and local government areas nationwide under a zero-failure protocol.
He added that new official vehicles were being procured for Administrative Secretaries, while the Commission had established the Electoral Logistics Committee, chaired by Rear Admiral Jamila Malafa (Rtd), to strengthen logistical coordination.
The INEC chairman also disclosed that the Commission was refining its Result Management Systems, including the newly introduced eEC8A electronic verification platform.
According to him, the improvements were intended to make the movement and verification of election results more transparent from polling units to the national collation centre through the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV).
He said the Commission was also working with security agencies at national and state levels through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) to develop an intelligence-driven security framework for the elections.
Amupitan disclosed that the Commission had identified potential threats to its ad hoc staff, particularly members of the National Youth Service Corps, and had taken measures to address them.
He said intelligence provided by the Department of State Services had led to the identification and arrest of individuals allegedly connected to the plot, adding that they would soon be prosecuted.
The chairman further announced that INEC planned to convene a security conference to address additional concerns relating to election security.
He identified public distrust, voter apathy, misinformation and disinformation as some of the major challenges facing the Commission, warning that false reports and manipulated videos could spread rapidly and undermine confidence in the electoral process.
He said INEC would respond through proactive transparency, prompt official communication and strict operational standards at polling units.
Amupitan also emphasised the importance of staff welfare in improving institutional performance, disclosing that the Commission introduced the Consolidated Election Management Body Salary Structure (CEMBSS), taking its workforce out of the regular Civil Service structure with effect from January 1, 2026.
He said INEC was at an advanced stage of implementing a new salary and welfare package for staff, Commission members and Resident Electoral Commissioners.
The chairman added that monthly overhead allocations to state offices had been increased by 150 per cent, effective July 1, 2026.
“We are providing you with the tools, the vehicles, the technology, and the financial backing required to excel,” he said, adding that the Commission expected its personnel to reciprocate through neutrality, integrity and operational excellence.
The warning came as INEC intensified preparations for the 2027 General Election, with the Presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, 2027, and the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections fixed for February 6, 2027.
Amupitan said the nationwide exercise would involve more than 103 million registered voters and 176,846 polling units across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
He urged electoral officials to understand the law, remain neutral, document their actions and protect the integrity of the electoral process.
“To the voter in a rural ward or an urban center, INEC is not the Chairman in Abuja; INEC is you,” he said.
Declaring the South-East zonal engagement open, the INEC chairman expressed confidence in the Commission’s preparedness to conduct credible elections, insisting that its success would depend on the commitment of personnel at every level.
“The road to 2027 passes through our hands, and we shall not falter,” he said.
