2027: INEC and Question of Credibility

Sebastian Eshioromeh writes about growing concern about the impartiality of Independent National Electoral Commission ahead of the 2027 general elections in the country.

Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan (SAN) will find himself in the news for the wrong reasons, just like every INEC chairman before him. Fair or unfair, right or wrong, that is the burden of the office he occupies. When elections go well, the chairman gets a quiet nod. When things go wrong, he carries the blame. But here is what Amupitan must understand as the 2027 elections draw closer: his personal credibility is now on the line, and how he saves it depends entirely on him.

He cannot blame the President, neither can he blame the political parties. He cannot hide behind administrative jargon to save his face, in the case of any infraction, as the buck stops at his desk.

Consider what has happened in just the past few weeks. The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has publicly called for Amupitan’s resignation. At a press conference on April 2, 2026, the ADC leadership, alongside  ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former governor of Anambra state, Peter Obi, declared that they had lost all confidence in the INEC chairman. Their grievance was that INEC removed the names of the ADC’s National Working Committee from its portal, citing a Court of Appeal order in a leadership dispute within the party. The court did issue that order. That is a fact. INEC acted on it. That is also a fact. But the ADC argued that INEC deliberately misinterpreted the ruling. The party insists its leadership emerged from a properly conducted NEC meeting that INEC officials monitored. The courts have not decided who is right. The case is still pending.

Then came the X account controversy. On April 10, 2026, allegations surfaced that an account linked to Amupitan had posted partisan content supporting the APC during the 2023 elections. Digital investigators traced a Yahoo e-mail address and phone number, said to match those on Amupitan’s  University of Jos CV, to the account. Amupitan’s office denied everything. INEC issued a statement saying the chairman does not own or operate any personal X account and that the posts were fabricated. No court has ruled on this matter. No independent investigation has been conducted. The allegations remain unproven. But the ADC has since escalated its demand for his resignation, describing the digital evidence as incontrovertible.

Whether these allegations are true or false is not yet known. What is known is that Amupitan has already entangled himself in controversies he should have avoided. The referee of Nigeria’s elections is now a story, not an invisible arbiter. The ADC has formally demanded his resignation, listing seven specific grievances including accusations of partisan conduct and overstepping constitutional boundaries. The party has threatened civil disobedience and submitted petitions to foreign governments. The damage is already visible. And in the game of democracy, that is a loss before kickoff.

For weeks, there have been whispers about strange movements inside INEC. Resident Electoral Commissioners have been transferred. New faces have appeared. Old faces have returned. And on April 15, 2026, a press conference was held in Abuja that pulled back the curtain on something uglier than mere administrative reshuffling.

At that press conference in Abuja, Abayomi Arabambi, the National Vice Chairman of Labour Party (South West) laid out a troubling narrative in a letter directly addressed to President Bola Tinubu. He spoke of Mutiu Agboke, the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Osun State, who was suddenly removed and transferred without any public explanation. He spoke of a petition written by the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress in Osun State, that somehow triggered this removal. He asked a simple question: where was the investigation? Where was the fair hearing? Where was the evidence?

-Eshioromeh writes from Abuja

Till now, INEC has not deemed it necessary to respond to the issues he raised. Perhaps, because there is no answer.

There is an old African proverb: when a dead tree falls, every bird flies away. But here, the birds are flying back to a tree that has already been cut down. That is not nature. That is manipulation.

Aristotle once said, “The law is reason free from passion.” But what we are seeing in Osun State is passion dressed in the robes of the law. A petition driven by political interest. A removal carried out without due process. A replacement who retired but refused to stay retired. Where is the reason? Where is the dispassionate hand of justice?

Mr. President, let me speak to you directly now, because this letter is ultimately addressed to you.

You are building something. Let no one tell you otherwise. Your administration has taken steps to reform institutions that were rotten from within. The foreign exchange market, though painful, has seen more transparency. The fiscal policies, though harsh, have begun to shift the conversation from consumption to production. You have tried to steady a ship that was taking on water from every side.

But Mr. President, institutions are not built by policies alone. They are built by people. And the people you allow to run those institutions will determine whether your legacy stands or falls.

INEC is the temple of our democracy. It is the referee in the great match of Nigerian politics. If the referee is seen as corrupt, no one respects the result. If the referee is seen as biased, the losing side will never accept defeat. And when that happens, the courts overflow. The people lose faith.

You know this. You have seen it happen before.

The Third Schedule of the 1999 Constitution is clear. Resident Electoral Commissioners are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. They can only be removed by the President with a two-thirds majority of the Senate, and only for inability to discharge their duties or misconduct. Nowhere does the Constitution say that the INEC Chairman can transfer or remove a REC on his own. Nowhere.

So when Amupitan acted, he was not just moving a piece on a chessboard. He was stepping outside the law. He was creating a dangerous precedent. If an APC chairman in Osun can allegedly trigger the removal of a REC, what stops an opposition chairman in Lagos from doing the same? What stops anyone with a pen and a grudge?

This is not a small matter, Your Excellency. This is the foundation of electoral integrity cracking under the weight of administrative arrogance.

In elections, perception is reality. If the voters of Osun believe the REC is compromised, they will not trust the result. And if they do not trust the result, they will not accept the winner.

You have worked too hard, Mr. President, to let that happen in your own backyard.

The South-West is your home. It is your political base. With fair and credible elections, you could secure millions of votes from that region in 2027. But if the people of the South-West come to believe that your INEC is being used to rig elections against the opposition, you will lose them. Not because they hate you, but because they hate injustice more.

You have the power to stop this, Mr. President. You do not need to wait for the Senate. You do not need to wait for a court case. You can simply call Amupitan and remind him of his limits. These are not political interventions. These are acts of institutional hygiene.

The 2027 elections are not far away. The preparations are already underway. Every decision made now will echo in the ballot boxes next year. If INEC enters that election with its credibility intact, Nigeria will have a chance at peace.

You do not want chaos, Mr. President. No leader does.

So here is the simple truth. Amupitan can still save himself. He can reverse the transfer. He can clear the air on the ADC allegations — either by releasing evidence that proves his neutrality or by cooperating fully with any investigation. But he will not do any of that unless you tell him to. He answers to you. You appointed him. You can guide him.

Do not let a single political petition turn INEC into a weapon. Do not let the South-West become a symbol of electoral manipulation. And do not let the ADC controversy — whether true or false — define your INEC chairman as a partisan actor.

The ball is in your court, Your Excellency.

The people are watching.

-Eshioromeh writes from Abuja