The Senate has confirmed the appointment of Prof. Joash Amupitan, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), as chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Amupitan was conformed a screening by the upper legislative chamber on Thursday which lasted for about two hour.
Amutan who spoke on the lessons of the 2023 elections, ppromised to safeguard the independence and integrity of Nigeria’s electoral process, noting the importance of technology in enhancing transparency.
The law professor however, noted that misinterpretations of the role of the INEC result viewing (IReV) portal created confusion.
He said: “I believe what happened in 2023 was assumed as a glitch.
“Before we went into the election, my own understanding, based on the review of the decisions of the Supreme Court, we found that there was no clarity as to the purpose of IReV.
“Not until the Supreme Court came out to say that IReV was not an electronic collation system, and that position was not properly brought out before the election.
“The IReV was supposed to be a safeguard for comparison, because the laws made by this distinguished Senate did not do away with manual collation.
“However, IReV was supposed to provide some guarantee for checks and balances.”
Amupitan added that he would order a comprehensive audit of INEC’s technological infrastructure to ensure reliability ahead of future elections.”
He also assured that he will work with other agencies to ensure the integrity of elections.
After his presentation, Senator Shehu Buba, representing Bauchi south, moved a motion for the nominee to “take a bow and go”
The motion was seconded by Senator Olamilekan Solomon of Ogun west.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio subsequently put the confirmation to a voice vote, and the lawmakers unanimously endorsed Amupitan’s appointment.
Akpabio said, “The nominee answered questions from distinguished senators and took away written submissions as a working document on topical electoral issues.
“Accordingly, the Senate hereby approves the nomination of Professor Joash Amupitan, SAN, as Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).”
Amupitan, succeeds Mahmood Yakubu, who concluded his 10 year tenure on October 7, 2025
