The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has concluded its nationwide operational readiness assessment ahead of the 2027 general elections, announcing that nine of the 14 major statutory milestones in the election timetable have been completed.
INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Friday, November 6, 2026, during the North-Central zonal interactive meeting with staff and readiness assessment in Lokoja, Kogi State.
The meeting marked the conclusion of the Commission's nationwide assessment tour, following similar engagements across the South-West, North-West, South-East, North-East and South-South geopolitical zones.
Amupitan said the exercise was aimed at identifying operational gaps, addressing local challenges and ensuring that administrative or logistical failures did not disenfranchise voters during the elections.
He disclosed that the 2027 elections would involve more than 103 million registered voters across 176,846 polling units.
The presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled for January 16, 2027, while the governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections will hold on February 6, 2027.
The INEC chairman directed that no staff member should proceed on annual leave until after the elections, stressing that the remaining preparations required increased commitment and attention.
He warned against partisanship, negligence, financial impropriety and absenteeism, saying offenders would face sanctions in line with Section 26 of the Electoral Act 2026 and the Commission's Oath of Neutrality.
On technological preparations, Amupitan said INEC was configuring its Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices, including 57,000 newly procured units.
He added that electronic result management systems were undergoing audits to ensure transparent transmission of polling unit results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV).
According to him, printable Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and a digital PVC Location Portal had been activated, while the preliminary register of voters had been published for public scrutiny. The certified register is expected to be published on December 15, 2026.
On security, the INEC chairman unveiled an intelligence-led framework known as the "ICCES Tentacle" to strengthen coordination among security agencies from the national level to local government areas and registration area centres.
He also appealed to traditional rulers to support voter mobilisation, discourage electoral violence and political thuggery, and tackle misinformation and artificial intelligence-generated deepfakes.
The appeal followed his courtesy visit to the Kogi State Council of Traditional Rulers on Thursday, November 5, where he said INEC could not independently guarantee peaceful elections without the cooperation of community leaders.
Amupitan disclosed that PVC collection was being decentralised across the 774 local government areas, with collection points moved closer to citizens at ward level.
He assured Nigerians that the Commission remained politically neutral, declaring that INEC had no candidate in the 2027 elections.
The INEC chairman also highlighted improvements in staff welfare, logistics and infrastructure, including enhanced salary, hazard and field allowances, a 150 per cent increase in monthly overheads to state offices and the distribution of operational vehicles.
He further commissioned a newly constructed BVAS storage facility in Lokoja, explaining that the facility would address improper storage and inadequate cooling of the devices, preserve battery life and extend their lifespan.
The Kogi State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr. Shehu Wahab, said the state office was intensifying preparations for the elections, including addressing security concerns and the additional responsibilities arising from the restoration of 12 previously suppressed state constituencies.
The Director of Planning and Monitoring, Mrs. Helen Ajayi, emphasised the importance of electoral risk management and the involvement of traditional rulers in grassroots mobilisation.
At the traditional rulers' meeting, the delegation was received by the President and Chairman of the Council, the Attah Igala, His Royal Majesty, Dr. Matthew Alaji Opaluwa Oguche Akpa, alongside other prominent traditional rulers.
Responding on behalf of the council, the Ohinoyi of Ebiraland, His Royal Majesty Alhaji Ahmed Tijani Muhammad, pledged the traditional institution's cooperation with INEC and urged the chairman to uphold fairness, transparency, accountability and the rule of law.
The report was written by Zainab Aminu Abubakar, with editing by Wilfred Ifogah and Esther Chibuikem, under the supervision of Editor-in-Chief, Mrs. Victoria Eta-Messi.