Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan said on Friday that the commission was working round the clock and with relevant stakeholders to ensure that the mistakes of the past does not reoccur in the conduct and success of the 2027 general election.

He however said that the conduct of a successful general election is a collective national enterprise which require the collaboration of the political parties and other organs to deliver a credible election.

Amupitan who spoke when the ECOWAS Fact-Finding Mission for the 2027 general elections visited the commission said while INEC serves as the impartial umpire, the ultimate success of the ballot relies on political parties adhering to internal democracy and peaceful campaigning, civil society driving voter education, media houses combating fake news and digital disinformation, and security agencies maintaining neutral protection.

The INEC boss said that a stable transparent and peaceful election in Nigerian remain a vital anchor for democratic governance in West Africa, INEC Chairman said the commission was not unaware of several cases of violence across the country which he said serves as a threat to the successful conduct of the elections.

The Commission, he said is not leaving anything to chance as it was working in collaboration with the Interagency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) to ensure that all security challenges are addressed to ensure the safety of everyone participating in the elections.

He said “We have recognised that insecurity in some area is a major challenge. We recognise that no election can be deemed successful if citizens or election personnel operate under threat. Working through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES), alongside the Nigeria Police Force, the Department of State Services (DSS), the NSCDC, and the Armed Forces, we have operationalised an intelligence-driven security architecture known as the “ICCES Tentacle.”

“This framework uses early risk-mapping tools to secure our 176,846 polling units, safeguard ad-hoc staff—particularly members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC)—and guarantee uninhibited access for all voters, including Persons with Disabilities (PWDs)”.

Amupitan said that Nigeria, as a founding member and steadfast pillar of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), has long recognised that its national democratic stability is inextricably bound to the collective peace, democratic consolidation, and regional prosperity of West Africa.

He said that the presence of the group at the INEC headquarters is not a routine diplomatic engagement, but as a testament to our shared commitment to upholding the highest standards of constitutional governance, democratic integrity, and peer accountability across our sub-region.

The INEC Chairman emphasised that the 2027 General Election represents a pivotal milestone in Nigeria’s uninterrupted democratic journey since 1999, adding that in a sub-region currently navigating complex political transitions and security challenges, a stable, transparent, and peaceful election in Nigeria remains a vital anchor for democratic governance across West Africa.

He told his visitors that the scale of this exercise is vast. Nigeria’s voter population has officially crossed the historic threshold, with our National Register of Voters now standing at over 103 million registered citizens.

He said that the voter register is currently being displayed across the country and whatever discrepancies is noticed will be corrected and the register will be properly cleaned up for release on the 15th of December, 2026.

He also disclosed that serve the electorate and the country, the Commission will deploy personnel and technological assets across 36 States and the Federal Capital Territory, covering 774 Local Government Areas, 8,809 Registration Areas (Wards), and 176,846 Polling Units.

“The Presidential and National Assembly Elections will hold on Saturday, 16th January 2027 while the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly Elections is scheduled for Saturday, 6th February 2027

“To ensure operational readiness, the Commission has adopted a hands-on, field-first approach. We have moved away from administrative assumptions by personally conducting Zonal Readiness Assessment Tours across the geopolitical zones in Nigeria.

“We have concluded the readiness assessments in the South-West, North-West, South-East, North-East and we are heading to Port Harcourt, Rivers State for the South-South edition. The zonal assessment offers us the opportunity to engage directly with field staff, inspect logistics and infrastructure readiness and consult with traditional and community leaders”.

He said the zonal assessment visits are important because it will help the commission set the tone for the election and ensure that staff of the commission are reminded of the need to remain neutral as well as receive reports about their preparedness for the election.

He disclosed that during one of the zonal visits, the commission discovered the need for early deployment because of the terrains in such areas as well as issues of insecurity prevalent in those areas.

He disclosed that the off cycle and by elections conducted by the commission offered it the opportunity to put to test some of our plans as we prepare for the election, especially our BVAS which makes the election more transparent as a result of the use of technology for the election.

He said “It was a good opportunity to test the BVAS again to avoid the glitch which we experienced in 2023 and transmission of results has been very effective in all these elections. It is the same experience we are taking to the general election because we believe that every election provides its own lessons.

“The mistakes of the past will not be allowed to repeat itself. The mock accreditation exercise scheduled to take place sometimes in November is aimed at testing the BVAS for accreditation and transmission of results just to be sure that we have been able to cure the problem of glitch we had in 2023”.

According to the INEC Chairman, out of the 14 major statutory milestones set out for the 2027 General Election, the Commission has successfully executed nine of the schedule.

He said “Following the completion of three structured phases of the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise, we recently concluded the physical display of the Preliminary Register of Voters at Registration Areas nationwide.

“To complement this and ensure maximum public confidence, we have also published the Preliminary Register on our dedicated online portal (display.inecnigeria.org) for public scrutiny, claims, and objections, preparatory to the certification of the Final Register of Voters on 15th December 2026”.

He explained that the commission has received, through the various Electoral Officers and Resident Electoral Commissioners about 600 complaints, adding that the display of the register online further confirm such complaints and the commission is working to ensure that the complaints are properly addressed before the final display.

“Technological discipline remains the cornerstone of public trust in our electoral process. The Commission has optimised our hardware and software suite. The Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) will be deployed for dual biometric accreditation (fingerprint and facial), while our electronic Result Management Systems—including the newly introduced eEC8A electronic verification platform—guarantee that results declared at polling units are transmitted transparently and verified via the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV).

He also said that to ensure that results declared at the polling units are the ones transmitted to the IReV, the commission has introduced some guards which include making sure that the results are authenticated at the polling unit before uploading them to the IRev.

“Recognising that technology is only as reliable as the human beings operating it, we have implemented sweeping staff welfare reforms. Under this administration, we secured approval for the landmark Consolidated Election Management Body Salary Structure (CEMBSS), completely pulling our workforce out of the regular civil service scale, alongside a 150 per cent increase in state operational overheads.

“In return, we maintain a policy of zero tolerance for administrative negligence, extortion, or partisan compromise, backed by mandatory Oaths of Neutrality under Section 26 of the Electoral Act 2026.

“As we look ahead to the monumental task of 2027, there are specific areas where the continued partnership and collaboration of ECOWAS will be invaluable to our institutional mission. First, we welcome the robust deployment of long-term and short-term ECOWAS Election Observation Missions, whose independent and objective assessments lend vital international credibility to our democratic process.

“Second, we seek enhanced peer-learning and technical exchange regarding best practices in combating sophisticated electoral disinformation, managing logistics in complex terrains, and strengthening inclusive voter education.

“We look to ECOWAS to maintain active diplomatic solidarity—engaging political actors, civil society, and key stakeholders to ensure that peace accords and democratic commitments undertaken in Nigeria resonate positively across the entire West African sub-region.

He assured that the Independent National Electoral Commission has no candidate and no political party in the forthcoming elections, insisting that “our sole allegiance is to the rule of law, the sovereign will of the Nigerian electorate, and the democratic progress of our nation”. (Daily Trust)