*Prof. Joash O. Amupitan, SAN, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission announces the Commission’s total operational, technological, and logistical readiness for the Ekiti State Governorship Election, scheduled for Saturday, June 20 this year
Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared total operational, technological, and logistical readiness for the Ekiti State Governorship Election scheduled for Saturday, 20 June 2026, with the Commission’s Chairman, Prof. Joash O. Amupitan, SAN, personally leading a final pre-election engagement with critical stakeholders in Ado-Ekiti on Thursday, June 11, 2026.
Prof. Amupitan said this while addressing the Ekiti State Governorship Election Stakeholders’ Forum nine days to the polls.
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The Chairman also presented a comprehensive readiness profile, and delivered direct charges to political parties, security agencies, the media, and civil society on their respective responsibilities towards a credible electoral outcome.
Amupitan further noted that the Commission had finalised a clean, legally verified Register of Voters comprising 1,059,360 registered citizens, an increase from the 2023 baseline of 987,647, following the successful addition of 66,664 new registrants captured during Phases I and II of the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise.
The Chairman of the Commission that the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) had completely invalidated 2,103 cases of double registration, further securing the integrity of the roll.
The Commission as well assured that these voters would exercise their franchise across 16 Local Government Areas (LGAs), 177 Registration Areas (Wards), and 2,445 Polling Units, with the Commission targeting the simultaneous activation of all polling units at exactly 8:30 a.m. on Election Day.
Commission will use Bimodal Voter Accreditation System
In respect of the Commission’s technological framework, Prof. Amupitan confirmed that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) would be deployed across all 2,445 Polling Units as the sole instrument for voter authentication and accreditation, and that all polling-level results would be transmitted directly to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) for real-time public verification.
Amupitan averred: “No PVC, No Accreditation, and No Voting.
“There will be no bypasses, and there will be no exceptions.”
The deployment of assistive technologies, including Braille ballot guides and magnifying glasses for persons with albinism and persons living with disabilities, describing equity in electoral access as “a necessity, not an afterthought.”
Turning to the Commission’s security architecture, Prof. Amupitan disclosed that INEC, in absolute cohesion with the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES), had conducted granular threat mapping across the state, identifying localised vulnerabilities including political thuggery and ballot disruption in identified areas.
He said the EFCC and the ICPC had been enlisted to insulate all 2,445 Polling Units from the influence of vote-buying and financial inducement.
Amupitan equally stated: “We shall defend the ballot box from physical violence and fiscal contamination alikem.”
Referencing the Peace Accord signed by all 13 contesting political parties 21 May, 2026, the Chairman commended party leadership for the public demonstration of democratic civility but issued a firm warning that the gesture must translate into conduct on the ground.
He said: “An accord is only as valuable as the good faith of its signatories,” 9 “The Peace Accord must not be treated as a decorative ceremonial exercise.
“Its principles must be forcefully internalised and strictly observed down to your party officials, polling agents, and grassroots supporters.”
The INEC Chairman announced that the Commission had accredited 91 media organisations deploying a combined 675 journalists — drawn from print, broadcast, and new media — alongside 98 observer groups comprising 96 domestic and two international organisations, to monitor every aspect of the electoral process across Ekiti State.
Amupitan, therefore, urged members of the press to report with accuracy, fairness, and professional discipline.
He described the role of the Press constitutional rather than merely logistical.
The Chairman said: “You are the bridge between the ballot box and the citizenry.
“Resist the temptation of sensationalism, reject the inducement of partisanship, and decline every invitation to become an instrument of electoral mischief.”
For accredited observer groups, Prof. Amupitan charged them to deploy strictly in accordance with the Commission’s guidelines, remain neutral in conduct and appearance throughout the process, and present findings with fidelity to fact, affirming INEC’s full co-operation with every accredited journalist and observer.
Prof. Amupitan further placed the Ekiti election within a wider national context, disclosing that the Commission would simultaneously conduct legislative bye-elections on 20 June 2026 across six states: Enugu North, Nasarawa North, Rivers South East, and Ondo South Senatorial Districts, Dawakin Kudu/Warawa Federal Constituency in Kano State, and Zuru State Constituency in Kebbi State.
He told the stakeholders: “There is no dilution of institutional focus,” he assured stakeholders. “The exact same rigorous operational standards, technological safeguards, and stringent security arrangements deployed for the Ekiti Governorship Election will be uniformly applied across these concurrent bye-elections.”
Speaking at the forum in Ado-Ekiti, Dr. Bunmi Omoseyindemi, Resident Electoral Commissioner for Ekiti State, confirmed to the gathering that preparation had reached an advanced stage, with non-sensitive materials already received and being managed in accordance with established procedures.
He said sensitive materials would be deployed by the following week, training of election personnel was ongoing, and logistics arrangements were being finalised.
The Chairman of INEC emphasised continuous engagement with security agencies, political parties, civil society organisations, traditional institutions, and the media was being sustained.
Besides, he noted that the Commission had met with the Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers earlier in the day.
The Commissioner of Police, Ekiti State, CP Michael Falade, assured the forum that the Nigeria Police Force and all security agencies were fully deployed and would remain professional and impartial in the protection of voters, candidates, and electoral officials throughout the process.
The Ekiti state Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Hon. Adeniji Akinropo Philip, speaking on behalf of all political parties, called for peaceful conduct and constructive inclusivity, urging parties to see themselves as members of a common community rather than rivals in a winner-takes-all contest. He urged INEC to ensure a level playing field for all participating parties.
Earlier in the day, ahead of the Stakeholders’ Forum, Prof. Amupitan had led a strategic consultative meeting with the Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers, where he presented the Commission’s full readiness profile and formally enlisted the moral and traditional authority of the royal fathers in the cause of peaceful electoral conduct across Ekiti communities.
The Commission said at the stakeholder engagement, disclosed the Chairman’s findings from the Commission’s empirical risk mapping, identifying specific local government areas carrying elevated security concerns.
Ado-Ekiti, Effon, Ekiti South West, Ikere, Irepodun/Ifelodun, and Oye were flagged as vulnerable to political thuggery, cultism, and attempted ballot disruption, while Emure, Ikole, Ilejemeje, and Moba were marked for heightened security vigilance due to asymmetric threats including kidnapping.
He disclosed that 469 polling units had been identified within a critical 500-metre radius of these risk locations, with synchronised inter-agency deployments planned to provide robust protection.
The Chairma the royal fathers to use their traditional authority to summon candidates and political actors within their respective domains and remind them that the Peace Accord signed on 21 May 2026 must be respected in every village and ward.
He also appealed to the Council to deploy traditional town criers, ward chiefs, and community channels to mobilise subjects for PVC collection and early turnout by 8:30 a.m. on Election Day.
Commission warns against menace of vote-buying
In regard to the growing menace of vote-buying, Prof. Amupitan appealed directly to the traditional rulers to deploy their platforms against what he described as an ethical contamination of the democratic process.
He asserted: “The Fountain of Knowledge must lead the nation in demonstrating that electoral choices cannot be purchased.”
Prof. Amupitan, therefore, assured the Council that INEC has no candidate in the election.
The Chairman restated the Commission’s only allegiance is to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Electoral Act, and the sovereign will of the Ekiti people.