The Independent National Electoral Commission has declared its chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, innocent of allegations linking him to a partisan social media post.
INEC said it will pursue the arrest of individuals behind the alleged fabrication of an X account that was attributed to Amupitan.
The development stemmed from weeks of online controversy sparked by viral screenshots alleging that Amiputan operated an X account (@joashamupitan) and made a partisan post, “Victory is sure,” in support of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 election.
The controversy deepened after additional screenshots circulated on social media, purporting to show emails, phone numbers, BVN records and data breach links tying the INEC boss to the account.
Amupitan’s Chief Press Secretary, Adedayo Oketola, in a statement on Monday, said a forensic analysis of the viral post exonerated Amupitan.
He described the claims as fabricated, technically impossible, and part of an alleged coordinated disinformation campaign in against this boss.
According to INEC, its investigation, which relied on X platform data analysis, OSINT tools, internet archive records and timestamp verification, concluded that Amupitan “does not operate any personal X account.”
The statement read partly, “The forensic evidence is comprehensive, multi-sourced and unambiguous. Articles attributed to Prof. Amupitan are fabricated. The account is a clear case of impersonation.
“The public is advised to refrain from sharing or amplifying unverified screenshots. Media organisations must apply strict verification standards before publication.”
The Commission further stated that a key section of the findings stated that the X account attributed to Amupitan is a clear case of impersonation, and that all alleged posts, replies or statements linked to him are fraudulent and unverifiable.
Oketola said the investigation further revealed that the disputed account was created in September 2022 but had no linkage to the professor’s known email or official institutional contacts.
He claimed that timestamp analysis of the viral post showed it was posted 13 minutes before the original post it responded to.
“The Internet Archive (Wayback Machine) reportedly showed no trace of the account or any activity attributed to it before April 2026,” INEC quoted the report to have said, adding that the report also uncovered what it described as a “deliberate impersonation pattern.”
Oketola that on the same day the screenshots went viral, the disputed account was renamed from @joashamupitan to @sundayvibe00, set to private, and tagged as a “Parody Account”
“The renaming and ‘parody’ label is consistent with damage-control by an impersonator,” the report stated.
Oketola stated that the matter has now been referred to law enforcement agencies for investigation and prosecution under the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act.
