The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has announced its complete operational, technological, and logistical preparedness for the Ekiti State Governorship Election set for Saturday, 20 June 2026.
The Commission’s Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, is
personally overseeing a final pre-election meeting with key stakeholders in
Ado-Ekiti on Thursday, 11th June 2026.
Amupitan addressed the Ekiti State Governorship Election
Stakeholders’ Forum nine days to the election, providing a detailed readiness
profile and issuing direct responsibilities to political parties, security
agencies, the media, and civil society to ensure a credible electoral process.
The INEC Chairman revealed that the Commission has completed
a clean, legally verified Register of Voters, which now includes 1,059,360
registered citizens, an increase from the 2023 figure of 987,647, following the
successful addition of 66,664 new registrants during Phases I and II of the
Continuous Voter Registration, CVR, initiative. He also noted that the
Automated Biometric Identification System, ABIS, has effectively invalidated
2,103 instances of double registration, thereby enhancing the integrity of the
voter roll.
These voters will cast their votes across 16 Local
Government Areas, 177 Registration Areas (Wards), and 2,445 Polling Units, with
the Commission aiming for all polling units to be activated simultaneously at
precisely 8:30 a.m. on Election Day.
Regarding the Commission’s technological infrastructure,
Prof. Amupitan confirmed that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS,
will be utilized in all 2,445 Polling Units as the exclusive tool for voter
authentication and accreditation. Additionally, all results at the polling
level will be transmitted directly to the INEC Result Viewing Portal, IReV, for
real-time public verification.
“No PVC, No Accreditation, and No Voting,” the Chairman
emphasized, adding: “There will be no bypasses, and there will be no
exceptions.”
He additionally declared the implementation of assistive
technologies, such as Braille ballot guides and magnifying glasses for
individuals with albinism and those living with disabilities, emphasizing that
equity in electoral access is “a necessity, not an afterthought.”
Regarding the Commission’s security framework, Prof.
Amupitan revealed that INEC, in complete collaboration with the Inter-Agency
Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES), had performed detailed
threat mapping throughout the state, pinpointing localized vulnerabilities such
as political thuggery and ballot disruption in specific areas. He stated that
the EFCC and the ICPC had been engaged to protect all 2,445 Polling Units from
the effects of vote-buying and financial inducement.
“We will safeguard the ballot box from both physical
violence and fiscal contamination,” he asserted.
In reference to the Peace Accord signed by all 13 competing
political parties on 21 May 2026, the Chairman praised party leadership for
their public display of democratic civility but issued a stern warning that
this gesture must be reflected in actual conduct on the ground.
“An accord holds value only as long as its signatories act
in good faith,” Prof. Amupitan remarked. “The Peace Accord should not be
regarded as a mere ceremonial formality. Its principles must be deeply
internalized and strictly adhered to by your party officials, polling agents,
and grassroots supporters.”
The INEC Chairman announced that the Commission had
accredited 91 media organizations, deploying a total of 675 journalists from
print, broadcast, and new media, along with 98 observer groups consisting of 96
domestic and two international organizations, to oversee every aspect of the
electoral process throughout Ekiti State.
He urged members of the press to report with accuracy,
fairness, and professional integrity, characterizing their role as
constitutional rather than simply logistical.
To accredited observer groups, he charged them to deploy
strictly in accordance with Commission 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.
Amupitan also 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.
“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.”
The Resident Electoral Commissioner for Ekiti State, Dr.
Bunmi Omoseyindemi, in his remarks, 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. He
noted that continuous engagement with security agencies, political parties,
civil society organisations, traditional institutions, and the media was being
sustained, adding 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.
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 also
called on 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.
At that engagement, the Chairman disclosed 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 Chairman called on 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.
On the 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.
“The Fountain of Knowledge must lead the nation in
demonstrating that electoral choices cannot be purchased,” he told the royal
assembly.
He gave the Council his personal assurance that INEC has no
candidate in the election, reiterating that the Commission’s only allegiance is
to the Constitution, the Electoral Act, and the sovereign will of the Ekiti
people.
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