‎‎‎NEW INEC CHAIRMAN VOWS TO IDENTIFY GLITCHES THAT UNDERMINED 2023 ELECTIONS

‎In a related development, the newly confirmed Chairman of the
Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Professor Joash
Amupitan, has pledged to conduct a comprehensive audit of the INEC
Results Viewing, IREV, portal to identify and resolve the technical
glitches that undermined public confidence during the 2023 general
elections.
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‎Speaking during his screening before the Senate on Thursday,
Amupitan said the review would help restore credibility to the country’s
electoral process and strengthen the deployment of election technology
ahead of future polls.
‎He noted that the IReV and the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System,
BVAS, were introduced to enhance transparency and integrity in
elections, in line with global best practices.
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‎He explained that the Supreme Court later clarified that the IReV portal
was not designed as an electronic collation system but as a verification
tool to ensure consistency between manually collated results and those
transmitted electronically.
‎Amupitan said his administration would audit the IReV system to
determine the root causes of the glitches experienced in 2023 and
evaluate whether the existing technology is capable of meeting Nigeria’s
electoral needs. He also noted that delayed release of election funds
had contributed to institutional challenges faced by INEC in past
exercises, despite existing legislation mandating early disbursement of
resources.
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‎Amupitan who further assured lawmakers that he would undertake a
broader audit of INEC’s operations and constitutional framework to
identify and address factors limiting the commission’s independence and
efficiency, pledged to uphold the autonomy of the commission and work closely with the National Assembly to strengthen electoral reforms that
would guarantee free, fair, and credible elections.