By Our Correspondent
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, has stated that the commission does not have control over the telecommunications infrastructure used for the electronic transmission of election results. According to him, INEC relies on external network service providers to transmit results, as it does not own or operate an independent communication network.
Amupitan made this clarification while defending the commission’s proposed budget for the 2027 general elections before the Joint Committee of the National Assembly on Electoral Matters in Abuja.
He explained that without its own dedicated network system, INEC cannot assume full responsibility for connectivity-related challenges that may arise during the electronic transmission process.
He further noted that establishing a standalone, nationwide communication infrastructure would require enormous financial investment and technical resources.
While such a move could give the commission complete control and accountability over result transmission, it would significantly increase operational costs and expand INEC’s mandate beyond electoral administration into telecommunications management.
The statement comes amid ongoing national conversations about the reliability and legality of real-time electronic transmission of election results.
As debates continue in the National Assembly over possible amendments to the Electoral Act, concerns remain about whether Nigeria’s existing telecommunications infrastructure is robust enough to support seamless nationwide result uploads during elections.
In essence, INEC’s position underscores a critical challenge: although electronic transmission is part of modern electoral reforms, the commission’s dependence on third-party network providers limits its control over the technological backbone required to guarantee uninterrupted real-time result transmission.
