By Omeiza Ajayi
ABUJA: Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC, Prof. Joash Amupitan SAN, has disclosed that the people behind a plot against the Commission’s Ad Hoc staff, especially Youth Corps members, have been uncovered and arrested and would be prosecuted soon.
Prof. Amupitan made the disclosure in Enugu at the South-East Zonal Interactive Meeting with Staff and Readiness Assessment for the 2027 General Election.
According to the Commission’s Daily Bulletin, INEC recently identified potential risks to its Ad Hoc staff, “especially Youth Corps members,” and has taken measures to neutralise the threat. He said the people behind the plot were uncovered by the Department of State Services DSS.
The INEC Chairman added that the Commission plans to host a Security Conference “very soon” to address other issues relating to election security.
On the Commission’s wider security arrangements, he said its partnership with the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) had been reinvigorated and expanded.
Prof. Amupitan said INEC was working with security agencies at national and state levels, using its Election Risk Management ERM tools, to develop “a robust, intelligence-driven security architecture.”
He also identified a lingering public trust deficit, voter apathy and the rising tide of misinformation and disinformation as the Commission’s greatest challenges.
“A single malicious fake news post, an unverified rumour, or a deepfake video can travel across millions of screens in seconds,” he warned.
He said false narratives only gain traction when the Commission’s administrative execution falters. “The conduct, competence, and character of our staff in the field are either our strongest defence against fake news, or its biggest catalyst,” he stated.
The INEC Chairman said the Commission’s response would be “proactive transparency, swift official communication, and uncompromising operational precision at every polling unit.”
On discipline, Prof. Amupitan said, “Partisan leaning, administrative negligence, extortion, or compromised ethics will not be tolerated under my leadership.”
He reminded staff that Section 26 of the Electoral Act 2026 requires all staff, Electoral Officers, Presiding Officers, Returning Officers and participating security officials to swear an oath of loyalty and neutrality.
“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.
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