ABUJA: Former Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Professor Chidi Odinkalu, has raised concerns over what he described as multiple principalities within the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), warning that such entrenched interests could undermine the integrity of the commission’s new Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan.
Speaking on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, Odinkalu described Amupitan who was sworn in earlier on Thursday by President Bola Tinubu as a man of honour and integrity.
However, he cautioned that the internal realities at INEC could make it difficult for him to deliver credible elections without strong resolve and reform.
INEC is dominated by multiple principalities, Odinkalu said. Every senior politician, from the presidency to the state governors, has a plant within INEC. These insiders act as informants, feeding their political sponsors with classified information about the commission’s activities.
He alleged that some politicians go as far as paying INEC staff to provide daily updates, including the chairman’s private movements and internal plans.
The chairman’s breakfast, lunch, or meetings can be reported to these politicians in real time. That is how deep the infiltration has gone, Odinkalu revealed.
According to him, this entrenched network of political informants poses a serious threat to the independence and credibility of Nigeria’s electoral process.
Odinkalu lamented that the reputation of INEC had suffered a major decline under former Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, claiming the institution regressed from the credibility foundation laid by Professor Attahiru Jega
Professor Mahmood Yakubu dragged INEC backwards from the integrity that Jega built, he said. Professor Amupitan must now work to rebuild public trust, ensure that citizens’ votes truly count, and reduce post-election litigations to the barest minimum.
He urged the new INEC chairman to define his priorities clearly and adopt measurable benchmarks for progress, particularly as he faces his first major electoral test in a matter of weeks.
He cannot fix everything overnight, Odinkalu cautioned. But his approach to the November 8 Anambra governorship election will be his first true test. Nigerians are watching.
Odinkalu noted that the upcoming Anambra, Ekiti, and Osun governorship elections would serve as practical indicators of how Professor Amupitan intends to manage future elections, including the 2027 general polls.
Those elections will be his laboratories, he said. How he handles them will give Nigerians a foretaste of what to expect in 2027. People will not give him a free pass.
Despite the enormous challenges, Odinkalu expressed optimism about Amupitan’s character, recalling their long-standing acquaintance since law school.I’ve known Joash since law school
we were admitted to the Bar on the same day, he said. He is a man of basic decency and integrity.
My hope is that when his tenure ends, he will leave INEC with the same good name he came in with. Joash will not administer an election that produces multiple results like what we saw in Edo.
Earlier in the day, President Bola Tinubu, while swearing in Professor Amupitan, charged him to safeguard the sanctity of Nigeria’s electoral process and strengthen INEC’s institutional capacity.
Upon assumption of office, Amupitan reaffirmed his commitment to defend Nigeria’s Constitution and uphold the electoral laws.
I have just taken the oath of allegiance and the oath of office as INEC Chairman, he told journalists.
I reaffirm that I will defend the Constitution and the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as they relate to the electoral system.
As Nigerians look ahead to the next round of elections, Odinkalu’s warning underscores the need for deep institutional reforms within INEC and a renewed commitment to transparency, accountability, and independence under its new leadership.
