From David Onuoja, Abuja
The Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commissionb(INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, has described the just concluded Osun State governorship election as a superlative benchmark in electoral administration, while announcing a nationwide mock accreditation exercise for November 2026 ahead of the 2027 General Election.
Speaking in Abuja, Friday, while receiving the Chargé d’Affaires of the Canadian High Commission, Mr David Sproule, and the Country Representative of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Mr Moritz Sprenker, Amupitan said the Osun election held last week showed the gains of administrative planning and technology. Saying, 3,556 of the 3,763 polling units in the state, representing 94.5 per cent, opened for accreditation and voting by 8:30 a.m.
He credited the outcome to optimal performance of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, seamless transmission of results to the INEC Result Viewing portal, and proactive management by field officials. “We view the success in Osun not as a final destination, but as the gold standard that will guide our preparations for 2027,” he said.
In the same vein, the Chairman made it known to journalists in Abuja, that INEC would conduct the mock accreditation to test BVAS readiness and fortify the integrity of the ballot. He also flagged the need for a voter revalidation exercise for early registrants, particularly the elderly from 2011, noting that time constraints would prevent it before 2027 but that it remains necessary to avoid future delays.
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Prof. Amupitan said the Commission’s calendar is now tight, with Presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for 16 January 2027 and Governorship and House of Assembly elections for 6 February 2027.
He recalled that public campaigns officially commenced on 19 August 2026, after candidates signed the first National Peace Accord on issue-based campaigning in Abuja.
In his engagements, he outlined five priorities with Canada: consolidating Osun’s technological gains, deepening inclusivity for women, youth, persons with disabilities and other groups across 176,000 polling units, strengthening institutional capacity, countering misinformation, and delivering the mock accreditation.
He added that INEC has set up a dedicated Artificial Intelligence Unit to improve data management and safeguard results transmission.
Amupitan also reassured the international community of INEC’s independence and neutrality as the Commission scales logistics to deploy about 1.4 million ad-hoc personnel nationwide.
In their separate speech, both Canada and KAS reaffirmed support for credible elections in Nigeria, with KAS noting over 25 years of work in Nigeria on democracy, the rule of law and capacity building.
Mr Sproule from Canada, commended INEC’s commitment to credible elections and reaffirmed Canada’s readiness to support, especially on inclusion and observation.
While Mr Sprenker, on behalf of KAS, recalled over 25 years of partnership in Nigeria and pledged continued collaboration on civic education, electoral technology and peaceful electoral processes.
