Moses Ofodeme
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said that technology alone cannot guarantee credible elections without an informed, engaged and confident electorate.
The Chairman of INEC, Prof. Joash Amupitan, said this on Wednesday while receiving the Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, and his team on a courtesy visit to the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.
He described the visit as a vital meeting of minds between two institutions committed to strengthening Nigeria’s democratic culture.
Prof. Amupitan said the Commission had continued to invest in innovative electoral technologies, including the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), but noted that these innovations would achieve little if citizens remained disconnected from the electoral process.
He said the Commission could acquire the best technology and optimise its systems to international standards, but that such achievements would count for little if citizens remained detached, uninformed or cynical about the power of their votes.
The INEC Chairman identified voter apathy, fake news and coordinated misinformation as major threats to Nigeria’s electoral process, describing them as a silent but dangerous enemy capable of undermining public confidence in elections.
He called for a stronger partnership between INEC and the NOA to drive grassroots voter education and proposed joint nationwide campaigns against vote-buying, electoral misinformation and other practices that threaten democratic participation.
Prof. Amupitan said Nigerians needed to be taught why their votes mattered and how new legal and technological safeguards protected their choices.
He cited the 21 February Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections and the 20 June Ekiti State governorship election as evidence of improvements in election administration, pointing to the early opening of polling units, successful biometric accreditation through BVAS and faster upload of results to the IReV portal.
He, however, acknowledged persistent challenges, including low voter turnout and voter confusion over polling unit changes and voter registration transfers.
Prof. Amupitan said preparations for the 2027 General Election were already underway and pledged the Commission’s support for sustained collaboration with the NOA to strengthen civic education, rebuild public confidence and encourage greater participation in the electoral process.
Earlier, the Director-General of the NOA, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, said the Agency’s nationwide presence enabled it to sustain voter education and civic enlightenment beyond election periods.
He said protecting citizens’ right to choose their leaders was a shared responsibility, noting that while it was the right of citizens to decide their leaders, all stakeholders had a responsibility to protect and promote that right.
The NOA DG said the last General Election exposed knowledge gaps, particularly among first-time Gen Z voters, describing the gap as a danger to the country.
Mallam Issa-Onilu said the Agency operated a total of 818 offices nationwide, through which it communicated government policies, programmes and projects to Nigerians and generated feedback.
He said public trust could not be enforced but had to be built through example, and called for sustained collaboration with INEC, stressing that voter education ought to be an ongoing exercise rather than a periodic one.