The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Professor Joash Amupitan, has cautioned the African Democratic Congress against proceeding with its planned congresses and national convention without the commission’s supervision, warning that failure to comply with court orders could result in electoral victories being invalidated.
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Amupitan issued the warning during an interview on Arise TV on Friday, following the party’s insistence on going ahead with its convention despite INEC’s derecognition of the leadership linked to David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola.
In a sharp rebuke to opposition parties accusing INEC of bias, Amupitan insisted that the commission’s actions are strictly guided by law, not politics.
“The point is simple: this is law, not politics. INEC will not be dragged into political theatrics or wailing. Elections are about procedures, facts, and compliance with the Constitution,” he stated.
The INEC chairman dismissed claims that the commission is part of a plot to entrench a one-party state in Nigeria.
“I am not guilty as charged. Let me say it very clearly. I am not a party to the plan of anyone to turn Nigeria into a one-party state,” Amupitan declared.
“By the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Nigeria is a multi-party state. Look at the last election. There were many parties that contested. I think about 10 political parties. In that case, you even had the ADC having five, and PDP winning one. Zenith Labour Party did very well. There are other parties that are existing.”
Amupitan warned the ADC factions against proceeding with their planned convention without considering the legal implications.
“So if they are going ahead with their congress, with their convention, it’s left for them to look at it, whether it is in contravention of the court,” he said.
“INEC didn’t just take a decision. We didn’t just wake up one day and took this decision. There was something that led to it. There was an order of court.”
The INEC chairman explained that the Court of Appeal had issued binding orders that constrain the commission’s actions.
“Don’t do anything. Don’t take any step that will render any proceeding before the court nugatory,” Amupitan stated, citing the court’s directive.
He explained that the issue of conducting congresses and conventions is already part of a pending legal process.
“So, if already they are asking that don’t do any congress, don’t do any convention, it is a relief that is being claimed. And especially they filed a motion for that purpose, that motion has not been determined,” he continued.
Amupitan explained the significance of the Court of Appeal’s order to maintain status quo ante bellum.
“So, if you look at it from that perspective, and there are some difficult decisions to that effect. The status quo is even different from status quo ante bellum. So, when you talk of status quo ante bellum, it means I have to go back. And that was a specific order of action,” he said.
“When you say status quo ante bellum, at what point will you put the date of that status quo? If you look at it backwards now, you look at it from the viewpoint of when was there a controversy. Controversy started when on the 29th day, July 2025, there was a meeting of NEC, which now ratified the appointment of the deputy national president. So, that’s when we had issues.”
The INEC chairman warned that disregarding court orders could have serious consequences, citing past electoral precedents.
“Let me tell you what happened in Zamfara. It happened in the past. We don’t want to conduct an election without this early warning, and at the end of the day, after you have won, the court again will come and declare the election invalid,” he said.
“And the implication is that the person with the second highest number of votes will be declared the winner.”
“It happened in Plateau State during the last election, where after the question of primaries was an issue, and congresses were not held in some states, in some portion of Plateau State. So, the court said, go and do those primaries. But unfortunately, they did not obey the court order. So, failing to obey the court order has consequences.”
Amupitan revealed that INEC received conflicting communications from opposing factions.
“On the 16th day of March 2026, I received two letters. One from the solicitors of Senator David Mark, requesting me to maintain the status quo, if ever, and not to recognise the other. That’s when I also received another letter from Summit Chambers, the solicitors, that by order of the courts, he was supposed to be recognised as the leader, national leader of ADC, and requesting that I should come down,” he disclosed.
“So naturally, when you receive such communications, you have to refer it first. I call a meeting of the legal department and the EPO, and we look at the facts based on the changes.”
Amupitan emphasised that INEC’s decision was carefully considered.
“We did not wake up one day and take a decision. Everything we do is guided by law and court directives,” he said.
“They are at liberty to do whatever they want to do, but INEC do not want to go into this situation again.”
The INEC chairman noted that existing motions before the Federal High Court constrain the commission’s actions.
“So, if we are going to take any step, to go and monitor any primaries, there’s an injunction that stops us from going there. To go and monitor any congress, there’s an injunction that is stopping us from going there,” he explained.
Amupitan also addressed concerns about the commission’s planned voter register revalidation exercise.
“The decision to revalidate the voters register was taken even before I became the chairman. The only problem is that it has not been implemented. That is why I have now decided to put it in this year’s budget, so that the exercise will be carried out,” he said.
“Our records for now, if you’re not adding the number that I’ve registered recently, we have about 93 million voters. That record is not great.”
He cited the Anambra governorship election as an example of the problem.
“In Anambra State, when we had the governorship election last year, there were about 2.8 million registered voters. And out of the 2.8 million registered voters, only about 600,000 turned up for registration. But there and then, our attention was drawn to certain facts. People were coming to me, they knew of many people that died many years ago. There were so many people that registered several times.”
Amupitan explained that the validation process would be conducted in phases.
“Now, the validation is going to be two phases. You have the first phase, which has to do with framework, and then engagement with the stakeholders. That is the first phase. Then you have the second phase, which has to do with going to the fields. It has to do with testing and so many other things. Then before the actual exercise,” he stated.
INEC Chairman Amupitan’s interview represents the most comprehensive public explanation of the commission’s position on the ADC leadership crisis.
His repeated emphasis that “this is law, not politics” is a direct response to accusations from opposition figures like Chidi Odinkalu and Dumebi Kachikwu that INEC is colluding with the APC to weaken opposition parties.
The references to Zamfara and Plateau State serve as stark warnings to ADC factions contemplating proceeding with conventions without INEC supervision. In both cases, failure to comply with court orders on primaries and congresses resulted in electoral victories being overturned and candidates with the second-highest votes being declared winners.
For the ADC, the legal pathway is now clear: proceed with conventions at your own risk. Without INEC monitoring and recognition, any primaries conducted may be deemed invalid, and candidates nominated through such processes may have their eventual electoral victories nullified by the courts.
The INEC chairman’s explanation of status quo ante bellum — requiring parties to return to the position before the controversy began on July 29, 2025 — suggests that neither the David Mark-led faction nor the Nafiu Bala Gombe group currently has legal standing to conduct party activities.
Until the Federal High Court determines the substantive matter, the ADC remains in legal limbo — unable to move forward with its 2027 preparations while its rivals in other parties continue with their electoral activities.
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