The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Joash Amupitan, has assured Nigerians that the commission has the capacity to electronically transmit election results in 2027, but cautioned that it may not be able to guarantee a “100 per cent perfect election.”
Amupitan spoke on Sunday at the Citizens’ Town Hall programme aired live on major television networks and tagged, ‘Electoral Act 2026: What it means for your votes and the 2027 elections.’
The live electoral debate was anchored by popular presenter Seun Okinbaloye and the Executive Director of Yiaga Africa, Samson Itodo.
In attendance were the All Progressives Congress National Chairman, Nentawe Yilwatda, and Labour Party’s Interim National Chairman, Nenadi Usman, former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, Senator Ireti Kingibe, among others.
Amupitan appealed to Nigerians to manage expectations, saying the commission would strive for excellence but could not promise perfection.
“Let me just appeal to Nigerians, because I have noticed now that what Nigerians desire is a perfect election. And INEC will strive as much as possible to give this country the best election.
“However, we may not be able to achieve a 100 per cent perfect election for now. But as far as electronic transmission of results is concerned, I said it before the FCT Area Council that we have the capacity to transmit the results, and that we’re going to transmit the results. The only concern was real-time,” he stated.
The INEC chairman described elections as central to democratic governance, emphasising the importance of voter education and institutional transparency.
“Election, for that matter, is the lifeblood of democracy. According to Abraham Lincoln, the ballot is more powerful than the bullets. Also, the ignorance of a voter is very inimical to the security of a nation.
“So, that is why we cannot underscore the role of INEC, as well as the civil society, in guaranteeing a transparent and credible election,” he stated.
Amupitan noted that INEC was actively involved in the process that produced the Electoral Act 2026, which he said began about three years ago through a joint committee comprising members of the National Assembly, civil society organisations and the commission.
“As of the time I was taking over, the work was almost concluded. But nonetheless, we still made some important provisions and recommendations in the new acts,” he said.
On the contentious issue of electronic transmission of results — a subject that dominated debates after the 2023 general elections — Amupitan disclosed that the commission pushed for mandatory transmission during legislative deliberations.
“Now, even talking about the transmission of the results, you will notice that the original provision that came out of the retreat from the National Assembly was not exactly what you have today.
“But when INEC came in, we talked of transmission being mandatory. But let us be sincere and honest. The only problem that we had was how to define what we call real time,” he stated.
He cited the recent Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections as a practical example of the challenges confronting real-time transmission, particularly in hard-to-reach areas.
“Let’s look at the FCT area council election that just took place. Now, there are six area councils in the FCT. The results came out on time in five area councils. But in the Kuje area council, we have 10 wards. And the results in one ward, Kabi, did not come until the following day, Sunday.
“Now, on Saturday, when we mobilised and sent people to that ward from Kuje town, Kabi ward is about three-and-a-half hours’ drive. And the terrain is very bad. So I was worried.
“When we sent our polling officials and security agencies to that ward, the moment they entered that place, we could not reach them. They were not accessible by phone. And nobody could speak to them until we had to send somebody on Saturday morning, just to be sure that they were safe, before we now got the results.
“They brought the results to Kuje town. And then it was collated along with the remaining nine wards before the result could be declared,” he explained.
Despite the delay, the INEC boss insisted that transmission itself was not the core problem.
“I don’t see the issue of transmission as really a problem. I don’t see it as an issue because, from my little experience, over four months now in INEC, the problem is not even the network.
“The problem I have seen is the adequacy of the network we have. For instance, you expect that in a place like FCT, you should be able to transmit your results without any encumbrance. But we had a situation where it was impossible for us to have a real-time transmission of results, especially from the Kabi ward, until the following day. And in some of the wards, some results were transmitted,” he said.
Amupitan linked election credibility closely to logistics, warning that operational lapses could undermine public confidence.
“So, talking about logistics, I’ve said it often that your election can be as good as your logistics. So, where there is logistics failure, you know that you are beginning to fail.”
While admitting that the FCT poll experienced “some logistic issues,” including human errors, he said the commission was already addressing them.
“As a regulatory body, we’re determined to achieve all this. But nonetheless, we have to admit that there were some logistical issues. Some were purely human, which we are trying to address,” he added.
He, however, expressed optimism that the 2027 general elections would mark a significant improvement over previous polls, citing increased voter awareness and growing public demand for accountability.
“But I want to assure you that the election of 2027 will be the best election that Nigerians will have because Nigerians of 2023 are different from what you have in 2027. People are much more aware. And you know the correlation between elections and development.
“Nobody is happy about the classification of Nigeria as an underdeveloped country. So we want a situation where our process will be able to guarantee the confidence and the transparency that people want to see in their system.
“So, by the time you have a transparent election, and people begin to trust INEC and trust their leaders, then the country will move forward,” he stated.