The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reassured Nigerians and the international community of its commitment to neutrality, operational excellence and the integrity of the ballot as the country enters the final 100-day countdown to the 2027 General Election. INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, gave the assurance on Tuesday,……
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reassured Nigerians and the international community of its commitment to neutrality, operational excellence and the integrity of the ballot as the country enters the final 100-day countdown to the 2027 General Election.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, gave the assurance on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, at a World Press Conference and National Stakeholders’ Meeting to mark 100 days to the first ballot, held at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre, Abuja.
Amupitan said the Commission had “moved decisively from planning into execution”, with election materials in production, technology undergoing rigorous quality assurance, the voter register finalised for public display and personnel undergoing systematic training.
“As we begin this 100-day sprint to the 2027 General Election, we reassure the nation and the international community of our total commitment to neutrality, operational excellence, and the sacred integrity of the ballot box,” he said.
Read Also: 2027: INEC Registers 232,658 Persons With Disabilities
The INEC chairman described the 100-day milestone as “not just a countdown” but “a call to action”, saying it marked the beginning of the final phase of preparations aimed at ensuring that the election becomes a global benchmark for transparency, integrity and peace.
Amupitan recalled that since assuming leadership of the Commission on October 23, 2025, INEC had conducted major off-cycle elections, including the Anambra, Ekiti and Osun governorship elections and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council polls, alongside several federal and state bye-elections.
According to him, reports submitted by local and international observers indicated that the elections met the benchmark of electoral integrity.
He said the polls also provided a testing ground for structural improvements, including the early deployment of ad hoc staff and sensitive materials, agile logistics and intelligence-led security arrangements.
The INEC chairman said the Commission issued the Revised Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2027 General Election on February 26, 2026, outlining 14 statutory milestones, nine of which had already been completed.
He added that the timetable had been translated into an operational plan synchronised across the Commission’s 23 headquarters departments and directorates, 36 state offices, the FCT and all 774 Local Government Area offices.
On funding, Amupitan acknowledged the timely release of statutory allocations by the Federal Government, saying the funds had enabled the Commission to meet international vendor obligations, finance the production of critical election technology and upgrade infrastructure.
He, however, called for the prompt release of the remaining funds to facilitate the seamless completion of outstanding activities.
On the voter register, the INEC chairman disclosed that the three phases of the Continuous Voter Registration exercise produced 10,772,421 new voters, bringing the National Register of Voters to 103 million.
He said the register would be displayed for public scrutiny from October 9 to 15, 2026, while distribution of Phase 1 Permanent Voter Cards to Local Government centres would commence on Friday, October 9.
Amupitan further disclosed that 18 of the 22 registered political parties submitted 36 presidential and vice-presidential candidates, while the Final List of Candidates for the National Assembly was published on September 12, 2026.
He said the final list of candidates for governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections would be published on October 10, 2026.
On procurement, the INEC chairman said production was advanced for 57,000 new Bimodal Voter Accreditation System devices, with some already delivered, while procurement for the printing of ballot papers and result sheets was nearing completion.
He said the Commission had also renewed its Memorandum of Understanding with the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) and the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) to mobilise more than 100,000 vehicles and 4,000 boats for the movement of election personnel and materials.
According to him, sensitive materials would be moved from the Central Bank of Nigeria vaults to the local government areas 72 hours before the polls and delivered to all 8,838 Registration Area Centres by 4pm on the eve of the election.
He said the arrangement was designed to ensure that polling units open at 7:30am nationwide.
On technology, Amupitan disclosed that a six-day stress-testing exercise of all configured BVAS devices had been scheduled for October 23 to 28, 2026, while a nationwide mock accreditation exercise would take place in November.
He also disclosed that the Commission had established an Artificial Intelligence Division within its ICT Department, operating under mandatory human oversight.
On security, the INEC chairman said the Commission, working through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES), would commence joint training for thousands of electoral security personnel.
He added that joint monitoring and undercover surveillance teams would be deployed with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) to track vote-buying.
According to him, violators would face immediate arrest and prosecution under the Electoral Act 2026.
Amupitan said the Commission would require 707,384 ad hoc personnel for each of the two election days, January 16 and February 6, 2027, translating to 1,414,768 engagements across 176,846 polling units.
He said recruitment through the INEC Portal for Recruitment of Election Staff (INECPRES) opened on September 18 and would close at midnight on November 18, 2026.
Warning against the dangers of disinformation, the INEC chairman said generative artificial intelligence, voice cloning and deepfake videos had made it cheap to fabricate the voices of election officials and doctored result sheets.
He urged media organisations to establish fact-checking desks, verify information with INEC before publication and resist declaring privately collated results.
“In national elections, it is far more important to be right than to be first,” he said.
Amupitan also announced that the Commission’s Media Accreditation Portal would go live before the end of October 2026 and urged media organisations planning to cover the election to apply early.
Speaking at the event, Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Alyonu Francis Idu, who represented the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, said the police were conducting clearance operations in Kogi, Niger, Benue and Taraba states to stabilise crisis points ahead of the election.
AIG Idu said the security situation had “created pockets of fear here and there”, adding that the police were working “to ensure that within time, we’ll be able to police the various crisis points and ensure there is social harmony for the election.”
He said the force would review its pre-election operations in November and report to Nigerians by the end of December.
“We must use legitimate authority, not power, to regulate the conduct of the election,” Idu said, expressing hope that the polls would be “an election that citizens will celebrate with freedom that is attained through their democratic rights.”
The Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Dr. Yusuf Dantalle, congratulated INEC on the recently concluded Osun governorship election, describing it as “well applauded” and “what Nigerians expect to see in the general elections.”
Dantalle warned INEC officials against taking sides with any political party or candidate.
“Nigeria belong to all of us. Today you are in INEC, tomorrow you’ll also be out,” he said, pledging political parties’ support for the Commission “to ensure that INEC succeed and Nigeria succeed.”
Turning to security agencies, Dantalle reminded them of their oath to protect the Constitution.
“Today you are in uniform, tomorrow you won’t be,” he said. “History will remember you for whatever role you play.”
He also appealed to the media to verify information before publication, noting that “there are so many information in the public space that is not true.”
“This election will come and go, but Nigeria will remain,” he said, urging INEC to “engage more before election with the political parties.”
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Electoral Matters, Senator Simon Lalong, reaffirmed the National Assembly’s commitment to strengthening the country’s electoral framework.
Lalong said credible elections were a shared responsibility involving political parties, security agencies, the media, civil society organisations and voters.
Similarly, the Chairman of the House Committee on Electoral Matters, Hon. Adebayo Balogun, urged INEC to ensure swift enforcement of constitutional and electoral provisions to prevent avoidable litigation.
The European Union Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Amb. Gautier Mingot, described INEC’s task as “Herculean” and called on all stakeholders to facilitate the Commission’s work, particularly from a budgetary standpoint.
Mingot said the EU would deploy an expert electoral mission to monitor preparations for the election, the conduct of the polls and their aftermath.
Delivering the vote of thanks, the Secretary to the Commission, Mrs. Rose Oriaran-Anthony, said INEC had taken note of the contributions from stakeholders and would “go back to work immediately to translate your recommendations into operational plans and frameworks.”
She described the engagement as “a recommitment to the Nigerian project”, stressing that the 2027 General Election “will be owned by you, by all Nigerians, not just conducted by the Commission.”
