The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has directed its personnel to suspend further annual leave as preparations intensify for the 2027 general elections, warning that any staff member found engaging in negligence, absenteeism, financial impropriety or political partisanship will face disciplinary sanctions.
INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, gave the directive on Friday during a readiness assessment meeting with commission officials in Lokoja, Kogi State.
Amupitan stressed that the commission would not tolerate conduct capable of undermining the credibility and smooth conduct of the forthcoming elections.
“Partisanship, negligence, financial impropriety and absenteeism would attract decisive sanctions,” he declared.
He urged INEC personnel to demonstrate greater discipline, professionalism and commitment to their responsibilities, directing Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) and Administrative Secretaries to strengthen attendance monitoring and enforce accountability across the commission’s offices.
The directive comes as INEC prepares for the 2027 general elections, which are expected to involve more than 103 million registered voters across 176,846 polling units nationwide.
According to the announced timetable, the presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled for January 16, 2027, while governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections will take place on February 6, 2027.
Beyond the disciplinary warning, the INEC chairman announced several welfare and logistical improvements aimed at strengthening the commission’s operational capacity ahead of the elections.
He disclosed that the Consolidated Election Management Body Salary Structure took effect on January 1, 2026, while arrangements for its cash-backing were still ongoing.
He added that salary, hazard and field allowances had been enhanced, while monthly overhead allocations to INEC state offices were increased by 150 per cent with effect from July 1, 2026.
On operational logistics, Amupitan said pick-up vehicles had been distributed to state and local government offices, while 20 new Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs) had been procured for Resident Electoral Commissioners. Administrative Secretaries are also expected to receive official vehicles.
The commission is equally strengthening its technological infrastructure. The chairman disclosed that INEC was configuring 57,000 newly procured Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices to improve voter identification, verification and accreditation during the elections.
He further revealed that the commission was auditing its electronic result management systems, including the eEC8A verification platform, to strengthen the transparent transmission of polling unit results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV).
On voter registration, Amupitan announced that printable Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and a digital PVC Location Portal had been activated to make voter services more accessible.
He also confirmed that the preliminary voters’ register had been made available for public scrutiny, while the certified final register is scheduled for publication on December 15, 2026.
Addressing concerns surrounding photographs appearing on the preliminary voters’ register, the INEC chairman explained that the information was still undergoing verification and validation before the final register would be released.
He maintained that the commission was taking steps to improve staff discipline, electoral technology, logistics and voter services as it prepares for the 2027 general elections.
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