By Vin Oliji Abuja
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Joash Amupitan, has stated that his leadership marks a new chapter for the Commission.
He reiterated his personal commitment to delivering free, fair, and credible elections that genuinely reflect the will of the Nigerian people.
Professor Amupitan stated this in Abuja during the Inter Agency Consultative Committee meeting on Election Security ICCES in the Anambra State Governorship Election.
He stated that the Anambra State Governorship Election, scheduled for Saturday, 8th November 2025, has been the subject of a comprehensive readiness assessment conducted across the state. He affirmed that the Commission is fully prepared for the polls.
“We recently conducted a Mock Accreditation Exercise in 12 selected polling units in 6 Local Government Areas of Anambra State, using the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).
“Although we encountered some network challenges, efforts are being made to ensure a seamless election on 8th November, 2025, and we are ready for large-scale deployment on Election Day, and we plan to deploy 24,000 personnel.
“The election will be held in 5,718 of the 5,720 Polling Units in the state; voting will not take place in the remaining two Polling Units due to the absence of registered voters. Results will be collated at 326 Ward centres, 21 Local Government Area centres, and finally at the State Collation Centre in Awka,” he stated.
The Chairman emphasised that due to the report of the high-powered delegation of four National Commissioners to Anambra State that only 63.9% of the voters collected their PVCs, the Commission met and decided to extend the ongoing collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in Anambra State, starting from 29th October, until Sunday, 2nd November 2025.
He said that the extension is aimed at ensuring all eligible voters can collect their cards at the designated collection centres across the 326 Registration Areas (Wards) in Anambra State, and that their mandate is to conduct credible elections, and that they are determined that no eligible voter should be disenfranchised.
“The security agencies have played a crucial role in securing the environment, without which the conduct of elections would be impossible in certain locations.
“To ensure every logistical, security, and operational detail for the successful election in Anambra is covered, a high-level ICCES meeting was held in the state itself. During this meeting, security chiefs provided updates on operations and flashpoint monitoring.
“Representatives of the Police, DSS, NSCDC, and the military collectively assured the readiness team of heavy deployments and coordinated patrols before, during, and after the election,” he informed.
He stated that the mission remains to ensure that every logistical, security, and operational element required for the Anambra election is perfectly in place and to achieve synergy among all security agencies is non-negotiable, particularly at a time when the credibility of the elections is paramount.
“We have also concluded arrangements with the transport Unions- (National Association of Transport Owners (NATO), the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), and Maritime Union Workers of Nigeria (MUWN) and have hired 200 Buses and 83 Boats to ensure seamless transportation of poll officers and sensitive materials.
“At the first ICCES meeting of the year, held on Tuesday, 11th February, 2025, which was chaired by my predecessor, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, the management of logistics during the November 16, 2024, Governorship Election in Ondo State was rightly adjudged a successful template for future elections,” he noted.
“Excellent coordination in the deployment of both security and electoral officials was cited as having contributed significantly to the early commencement of polls and the peaceful conduct of the Ondo Governorship election, despite the challenging terrain, especially in the riverine areas, “ he said
Professor Amupitan remarked that the Anambra election must aim for even better coordination, and charged everyone to work tirelessly towards the goal, and warned that any attempt to induce voters before or during the Anambra election must be resisted and curtailed, and appealed that they must join hands to combat the menace of vote buying.
“The Commission is pleased with our collaboration with law enforcement agencies, especially the anti-graft agencies, to stop vote buyers from contaminating our electoral process. Security agents cannot afford to create an environment that allows vote buyers to operate during the Anambra election.
Together, let us combat vote buying, uphold the values of democracy, and work relentlessly for the credibility of the elections. The path ahead may be challenging, but if we stand united, there is nothing we cannot achieve,” he remarked.