INEC Boss Warns 2027 Aspirants: No Political Office Worth Nigerian Blood

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has issued a stern caution to all political parties and their candidates, as well as campaign managers, against engaging in violence, hate speech, and vote-buying ahead of the 2027 general elections. The commission emphasized that any offenders caught would face strict sanctions and legal prosecution.

Professor Joash Amupitan, Chairman of INEC, delivered this warning during a strategic workshop for editors, jointly organized by the Nigerian Guild of Editors and the commission in Abuja. He underscored that INEC would not remain passive while political competition degenerates into violence, intimidation, or inflammatory rhetoric. “Democracy thrives on the clash of ideas, not the clash of weapons or the proliferation of hate speech,” Professor Amupitan stated.

To proactively tackle these issues, the INEC Chairman revealed that a framework has been established through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES). This framework is designed to monitor political violence and dangerous campaign rhetoric. He explained, “Through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security, ICCES, we have activated an early-warning tracking framework to log incidents of political violence, thuggery and dangerous campaign rhetoric.” He further warned that any political entity or candidate found to be inciting violence, disrupting rival rallies, or deploying armed thugs would face direct statutory sanctions and immediate prosecution, stressing that no political office in Nigeria justifies the loss of a single life.

In a departure from his prepared remarks, Professor Amupitan shared an alarming incident where he was shown material allegedly depicting an NDC candidate in Kano State brandishing a gun during a campaign. He also mentioned a serious threat received against commission personnel: “Another person was threatening that with AK-47s, they will kill all of us in the commission. So, that is what elections have turned into in Nigeria of today,” he lamented. He appealed to all Nigerians for restraint, reminding them of their patriotic duties as citizens, given that elections are a periodic process for leadership selection every four years.

The INEC Chairman also declared a strong stance against vote-buying, affirming that the practice severely undermines electoral integrity. “The commission is taking an uncompromising stance against vote-buying in all its forms ahead of the 2027 general election,” he stated. He added that INEC is collaborating with the Federal Ministry of Justice, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) to combat this menace.

Regarding voter registration, Professor Amupitan reported that over 10.6 million new registrants have been recorded across three phases of the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise. The first phase, from August 25 to December 10, 2025, tallied 2,611,266 registrants. The second, conducted from January 5 to April 17, 2026, saw 4,121,835 registrants, while the third, from May 11 to July 26, 2026, registered 3,867,997 individuals.

To enhance electoral processes, the chairman announced the acquisition of 57,000 new Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices for optimal performance. He elaborated on the enhanced eEC8A system, which will digitize polling-unit result sheets, cryptographically authenticate them, and upload them directly to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV). This system is specifically designed to prevent manipulation of polling-unit figures before they are entered into BVAS and transferred to IReV.

Addressing staff security, Professor Amupitan revealed that personnel from Zamfara, Sokoto, and other states had requested bulletproof vests and vehicles during the commission’s North-West engagement in Kaduna. He confirmed that INEC might procure bulletproof vehicles for staff operating in high-risk security flashpoints. Physical readiness audits and staff engagements have already been completed in the South-West and North-West regions, with similar exercises planned for the remaining four geopolitical zones. These audits cover office facilities, secure storage, security command procedures, and logistics networks.

Finally, Professor Amupitan mentioned the introduction of the Consolidated Election Management Body Salary Structure, alongside a 150 percent increase in state office operational overheads, effective July 1, 2026. He assured that efforts are underway to secure the necessary cash backing for immediate implementation.