The chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission has admitted the commission may not deliver a flawless election in 2027, particularly regarding electronic transmission of results, but insists it will be the best election Nigeria has ever conducted.
Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan made the statement on Sunday, March 1, while addressing a Citizens’ Townhall Meeting on election integrity organized by the Civil Society Network on Election Integrity at Abuja Continental Hotel.
The event brought together civil society organizations, academics, election observers and members of the public to discuss issues around Nigeria’s electoral process.
Amupitan acknowledged that while INEC is committed to improving electoral outcomes, Nigerians’ expectations for perfection may not be fully met in the upcoming polls.
He pointed to the recent FCT Area Council elections as an example, where results were transmitted on time in five councils but delayed in one ward in Kuje until the following day.
According to the INEC chairman, the success of an election should be measured by whether it starts on time as scheduled, whether it is conducted peacefully, and whether results are properly managed and declared transparently.
“Number one, if you want to measure whether an election is successful, you have to determine whether the election started as advertised. And we advertised the election for 8.30. So if we’re able to start the election at 8.30.
“Number two, if the election is peaceful; number three, if we’re able to manage the result very well, that is result management, and then declaration of results, then you can say you have a successful election. As a regulatory body, we were determined to achieve all this,” he said.
He went on to acknowledge some of the operational difficulties the commission has faced.
“But nonetheless, we have to admit that there was some logistics issues, some were purely human, which we are trying to address. And let me just appeal to Nigerians, because I have noticed now that what Nigerians desire is a perfect election.
“And I will strive as much as possible to give this country the best election. However, we may not be able to achieve a 100% perfect election for now.
“But as far as electronic transmission of results is concerned, I said it before FCT Area Council that we have the capacity to transmit the results. And that we’re going to transmit the results.”
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On the issue of real-time transmission, Amupitan used a practical comparison to explain the technical challenges involved.
“The only concern was real time. What is real time? For instance, if you go, you use your app to make a transfer from your account. Even in Abuja town, you are transferring 50,000 to Mr. B, and from your app, the amount has gone.
“But the person may not receive the alert until another 30 minutes, another hour, or even in the evening. So those are some of the things. And when you say it is real time, as soon as it is done, it must be received.”
He said result management and logistics remain the two key areas INEC is focusing on to improve transparency and public confidence in the electoral process.
Amupitan also reflected on lessons learned from the 2023 general elections, saying the technology used was adequately tested in state-level elections such as those in Osun and Ekiti, but not sufficiently for the presidential election, which required interstate coordination.
“My own audit of the 2023 election was that while the device was tested within the states, for instance Osun election, Ekiti election, however, when it came to the federal election, especially the presidential election that now became interstate, it was not properly tested.
“So one of the things we are trying to do before the election is to ensure that this transmission across the state must not fail.”
He assured Nigerians that INEC is working to prevent any system failures during the 2027 elections, adding that even if transmission delays occur, results will still be transmitted electronically.
“Glitch is eliminated. The glitch, by God’s grace, will not surface in Nigeria and when I even look at the provision to Section 63 of the Electoral Act, during the last FCT election, apart from that delay, we didn’t have any transmission failure, meaning that it is just a provision, a safety if it fails.
“And during my tenure, it will never fail. That is the determination. Even if it fails, the result must be transmitted. But the only problem is if it fails to do real-time transmission, as we had in that ward.”
The INEC chairman ended on an optimistic note, expressing confidence that the 2027 election will surpass previous efforts due to increased public awareness.
“By the grace of God, election of 2027 will be the best election that Nigerians will have. Because Nigerians of 2023 is different from what you have in 2027. People are much more aware.”