Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan, has assured Nigerians that technological improvements in the electoral process have effectively ended the era of ballot box snatching and manual alteration of election results.
Amupitan gave the assurance on Wednesday in Abuja while receiving the Director-General of the National Orientation Agency, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, during a courtesy visit to the commission’s headquarters.
The INEC chairman said the commission’s current technological infrastructure is strong enough to safeguard votes during the 2027 general elections, adding that election outcomes can no longer be determined through physical disruption of polling activities or manual manipulation of results.
“We need to explain to Nigerians that their votes matter and that modern technology now protects the choices they make at the polls. The days of snatching ballot boxes or rewriting results manually are over,” he said.
Amupitan noted that the presidential election is scheduled for January 16, 2027, while governorship elections will take place on February 6, 2027. He stressed the need for immediate and sustained voter education, warning that voter apathy and misinformation remain major challenges to credible elections.
According to him, recent elections in the Federal Capital Territory and Ekiti State demonstrated the effectiveness of technologies such as the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), which helped ensure smooth accreditation and timely transmission of results.
However, he said the polls also exposed gaps in voter awareness, particularly regarding polling unit changes, voter transfers and other electoral procedures.
“While our technology is advancing, public understanding of the system is not keeping pace. This shows the urgent need for deeper and more sustained voter education,” he said.
The INEC chairman added that technology alone cannot guarantee a successful election without an informed electorate.
“We can deploy the best technology available, but it means little if citizens remain uninformed, disengaged or cynical about the electoral process,” he said.
Calling for stronger collaboration between INEC and the NOA, Amupitan urged both institutions to launch grassroots campaigns focused on voter education, civic participation, combating vote-buying and tackling misinformation ahead of the 2027 elections.
Earlier, Issa-Onilu expressed concern over low voter turnout in recent elections despite the large number of registered voters.
“We need to increase voter participation. The number of people who actually vote is still far below the number of registered voters, and that is something we must address through sustained civic engagement,” he said.
Both agencies pledged to strengthen cooperation in educating Nigerians on the electoral process and encouraging greater participation in future elections.
