Amupitan says adequate funding critical to security, logistics for 2027 elections

Politics

OWERRI, Nigeria (NPA) — Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, has said adequate funding is critical to providing the security and logistics required for the successful conduct of the 2027 general elections.

Amupitan stated this on Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026, in Owerri, Imo State, while delivering a goodwill message at the sixth edition of the Conference and Retreat for Senior Police Officers, themed, “Developing a Nigeria Police Roadmap for Effective Management of Security During Elections.”

In a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary/Media Adviser, Adedayo Oketola, Amupitan said although INEC’s funding was constitutionally provided as a first-line charge on the Consolidated Revenue Fund, the scale of the commission’s responsibilities required sustained financial support.

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He said INEC was responsible for presidential, National Assembly, governorship and state House of Assembly elections, as well as voter registration and the registration of political parties.

The INEC chairman added that the commission had statutory powers to request the deployment of security agencies for elections and voter registration, making security an integral part of the electoral process.

“Sometimes, it is not what you would like to do that you are able to do because of financial constraints. The system does make allocations of what is available and what is affordable at a particular time for the expenses and appropriation of the agencies, including the police and also including INEC,” he said.

Amupitan stressed that voter registration remained the foundation of credible elections, warning that an inaccurate or outdated voters’ register could undermine the inclusiveness of the electoral process.

He said election expenditure, including security-related costs, should be treated as a collective national responsibility because INEC conducts elections affecting the three tiers of government.

According to him, adequate funding was particularly important for deploying personnel and electoral materials to local government areas, wards, registration areas and polling units.

He noted that even where security agencies successfully maintained peace, inadequate logistics could still undermine the conduct of elections.

Amupitan said INEC had made security and logistics priorities under his leadership and was working with government and security agencies to address operational challenges ahead of the 2027 polls.

He also highlighted the role of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES), describing it as a platform for coordination between INEC, security agencies and other relevant government institutions.

According to him, ICCES, which emerged after the 2011 general elections amid concerns over post-election violence, has evolved into a structured mechanism operating at federal, state and local government levels.

He said stronger inter-agency coordination would be necessary ahead of 2027, noting that the police remained the lead agency for election security.

The INEC chairman said lessons from recent off-cycle elections should be applied to preparations for the 2027 general elections, particularly in intelligence gathering, logistics and inter-agency coordination.

He acknowledged that Nigerians expected a highly effective electoral system but said achieving such standards required adequate resources.

“In Nigeria, we want the best. We want our electoral system to be 100 per cent. But sometimes we don’t ask ourselves the question: if we want the nation to be perfect, there must be a cost for it,” he said.

Amupitan urged relevant authorities to provide the resources required by INEC and security agencies to discharge their responsibilities effectively.

He also charged senior police managers to maintain professional neutrality, strengthen intelligence gathering and improve inter-agency coordination to protect the integrity of the electoral process.

The INEC chairman expressed optimism that the Owerri retreat would produce an actionable roadmap for election security ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, also urged the leadership and operational personnel of the Nigeria Police Force to support and work closely with the INEC chairman in fulfilling his mandate.

She said effective policing support remained important to safeguarding the electoral process and promoting free, fair, credible and transparent elections.