The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has begun moves to strengthen its state-level administrative machinery ahead of the 2027 General Election, with its Chairman, Professor Joash O. Amupitan, SAN, directing Administrative Secretaries across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to improve coordination and eliminate operational gaps.
Professor Amupitan gave the directive on Monday, September 7, 2026, in Lagos, while declaring open a two-day Strategic Operational Workshop for INEC Administrative Secretaries.
He described the workshop as an election-focused operational boot camp designed to assess the Commission’s preparedness and ensure uniformity in administrative and operational procedures ahead of the 2027 polls.
The INEC Chairman said the Commission was at a critical stage of preparations and could no longer afford divergent interpretations of administrative responsibilities or inconsistent operational practices across the country.
He said lessons from recent off-cycle elections, particularly the Osun State Governorship Election, would be used to strengthen the Commission’s operational standards nationwide.
According to him, recent elections have demonstrated that effective logistics, functional technology and administrative discipline can contribute significantly to transparent and credible electoral outcomes.
Professor Amupitan, however, noted that a single-state election provides a more controlled environment than a nationwide general election, stressing the need to replicate successful operational models across the 36 states and the FCT.
He described the Administrative Secretary as the Commission’s chief technical, operational and administrative anchor at the state level.
While Resident Electoral Commissioners remain the political and institutional leads in the states, he said Administrative Secretaries are responsible for the day-to-day administration of state offices, maintaining continuity and coordinating operational processes critical to election delivery.
Earlier, the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Lagos State, Professor Ayobami Salami, urged participants to use the workshop to review existing processes, identify institutional gaps and develop practical solutions ahead of 2027.
Professor Salami said the Commission’s decision to organise the workshop underscored the importance attached to strengthening the capacity and operational readiness of Administrative Secretaries.
He urged participants to share their field experiences and challenges, particularly in coordinating personnel, resources, logistics, finance, infrastructure and administrative processes.
The Chairman said the workshop would focus on five critical areas: Continuous Voter Registration and Permanent Voter’s Card distribution; logistics and election material management; electoral technologies; human-resource and ad-hoc staff optimisation; and general administration and financial compliance.
He said state-level strategies must support an accurate voter register and efficient PVC collection as the national register approaches 100 million voters.
The Chairman also highlighted the need for Administrative Secretaries to strengthen their mastery of key electoral technologies, including the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, INEC Result Viewing Portal, IReV, and other systems deployed by the Commission.
INEC Plans Real-Time State Readiness Tracker
Professor Amupitan announced plans to introduce an Administrative Secretary Master Operational Tracker to provide real-time information on the level of preparedness across states.
He explained that the standardised Excel-based tracker would be linked to the Commission’s Election Monitoring and Support Centre, EMSC, dashboard and Election Project Plan.
The system is expected to monitor critical areas such as election-material distribution, ad-hoc staff training and state-level preparedness, thereby enabling the Commission to identify and address challenges before they affect electoral operations.
He said the tracker would also serve as an onboarding framework for future Administrative Secretaries beyond the 2027 elections.
Amupitan Warns Against Political Interference
The INEC Chairman charged Administrative Secretaries to uphold professionalism, neutrality, punctuality, documentation and compliance in the management of state offices.
He warned that tolerating shortcuts or political interference could undermine neutrality and weaken the Commission’s institutional culture.
Professor Amupitan also urged the officials to report operational challenges promptly rather than conceal them, stressing that early escalation would enable the Commission to address problems before they develop into electoral crises.
INEC Secretary Seeks Better Relationship with RECs
The Secretary to the Commission, Dr. Rose Oriaran-Anthony, identified effective working relationships between Administrative Secretaries and Resident Electoral Commissioners as another area requiring attention.
She said complaints about strained relationships between the two levels of leadership had continued to reach her, warning that disharmony could affect the Commission’s operations.
Dr. Oriaran-Anthony urged participants to openly discuss challenges affecting their work and seek institutional solutions.
She said the workshop would also examine lessons from the 2023 General Election, financial management, logistics, assets, ad-hoc personnel, staff discipline, supervision, as well as the management of the Commission’s image and reputation.
Development Partners Pledge Support
A former INEC National Commissioner and Development Alternatives Incorporated, DAI, expert, Professor Okechukwu Ibeanu, commended the Commission for organising the workshop, describing it as an innovative initiative.
Representing the EU-SEGN DAI project, Professor Ibeanu assured the Commission of continued support, noting that development partners had committed resources and expertise towards strengthening the capacity of Administrative Secretaries ahead of the 2027 election.
He also stressed the importance of leveraging the experience of current and retired senior INEC officials in strengthening preparations for the 2027 polls.
The workshop, which brings together senior INEC officials and Administrative Secretaries from across the country, is expected to produce strategies for improving state-level operational readiness and ensuring more coordinated election administration ahead of the 2027 General Election.