Daniel Otera
The National Council of State has unanimously approved the nomination of Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan (SAN) as the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). President Bola Ahmed Tinubu presented Amupitan to the council to fill the position left vacant by Professor Mahmood Yakubu, who served from 2015 until October 2025. This makes Amupitan the sixth substantive chairman since INEC’s establishment in 1998 by General Abdulsalami Abubakar’s administration, which replaced the National Electoral Commission of Nigeria (NECON) ahead of the return to civilian rule.
Under INEC’s mandate, as outlined in Section 153 of the 1999 Constitution, the body conducts elections for federal and state offices, registers political parties, and maintains voter rolls for over 93.4 million registered voters, as recorded ahead of the 2023 general elections. The Commission was established in accordance with the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which specifies its role in conducting elections and overseeing the democratic process.
Furthermore, INEC published the voter register for the 2023 elections, which contained a total of 93,469,008 voters, as per their official statement.
Tinubu described Amupitan during the council meeting as the first nominee from Kogi State in the North-Central geopolitical zone to hold the position, adding that he remains apolitical. Members of the council backed the nomination without dissent. Kogi State Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo called Amupitan “a man of integrity.”
In line with constitutional requirements under Section 154(1), President Tinubu will forward Amupitan’s name to the Senate for confirmation screening.
Born on April 25, 1967, in Ayetoro Gbede, a community in Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State, Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan is turning 58 this year. His small town in Kogi has gained recognition in Nigeria’s electoral history due to his recent nomination as the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He completed his primary and secondary education before enrolling at Kwara State Polytechnic in Ilorin from 1982 to 1984. Amupitan then proceeded to the University of Jos in Plateau State from 1984 to 1987, where he earned his LLB and became an alumnus of the institution. He was called to the bar in 1988 and undertook his National Youth Service at the Bauchi State Publishing Corporation from 1988 to 1989, marking the start of his professional career.
Amupitan began his academic journey in 1989 as an assistant lecturer at the University of Jos, just one year after qualifying as a lawyer and at the age of 22. He later obtained his LLM in 1993 and completed a PhD in 2007, with all his degrees LLB, LLM, and PhD coming from the University of Jos. His swift academic rise saw him progress from assistant lecturer to reader in 14 years, achieving full professorship by 2008, all within less than two decades of his teaching career.
Today, Amupitan holds the rank of Professor of Law, specializing in Company Law, Law of Evidence, Corporate Governance, and Privatisation Law. In September 2014, at the age of 47, he earned the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), making him one of the younger professors to achieve this distinction, despite a career primarily in academia rather than private practice.
Throughout his career, Amupitan has held key roles at the University of Jos, including Head of the Department of Public Law from 2006 to 2008, Dean of the Faculty of Law from 2008 to 2014, and Chairman of the Committee of Deans and Directors from 2012 to 2014. Currently, he serves as the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Administration, overseeing daily operations in one of Nigeria’s oldest federal universities, which boasts over 50,000 students.
Amupitan’s leadership extends beyond the University of Jos. In 2023, he was appointed Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Joseph Ayo Babalola University in Osun State, guiding policy for the private institution, which has around 10,000 students. This role underscores his influence in Nigerian higher education.
Beyond university duties, Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan (SAN) contributes significantly to national bodies. He serves on the board of Integrated Dairies Limited in Vom, Plateau State, a firm dedicated to dairy production that supports over 500 local farmers through its supply chain.
From 2008 to 2014, he was a member of the Council of Legal Education, which regulates legal training in Nigeria and oversees the Nigerian Law School, admitting around 10,000 students annually. This is a crucial body that ensures the quality and effectiveness of legal education in the country.
Additionally, Amupitan is a member of the Governing Council of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, an apex research centre under the judiciary. The Institute has been instrumental in producing over 200 policy papers since its inception in 1986, contributing significantly to the advancement of legal scholarship in Nigeria.
Earlier in his career, from 1996 to 2004, Amupitan held a board position at Riss Oil Limited in Abuja, a key player in the energy sector, where his strategic input helped steer the company’s initiatives.
Amupitan’s academic output is well-recognized in Nigeria’s legal community. He has authored over 50 publications, including several textbooks that are essential references for law faculties and practitioners. Notable works include Corporate Governance: Models and Principles (2008), Documentary Evidence in Nigeria (2008, 300 pages, published by Innovative Communications), Evidence Law: Theory and Practice in Nigeria (2013), Principles of Company Law (2013), and An Introduction to the Law of Trust in Nigeria (2014), all available on Google Books.
His research has directly influenced national policies, particularly in areas such as corporate governance, privatisation, petroleum law, and electoral reforms. This aligns with the objectives of INEC, which has implemented policies to ensure the integrity of electoral processes, such as the continuous voter registration that recently boosted voter registration by 6.85 million completions.
Amupitan has also supervised over 40 postgraduate law students, 13 of whom have earned PhDs. Many of his students now lecture at Nigerian universities, contributing to the legal training of over 5,000 law graduates annually. His contributions to modernising law curricula, particularly in northern Nigeria, have raised academic supervision standards and incorporated practical reforms into teaching.
As a member of the Nigerian Bar Association, Amupitan has gained recognition for his advocacy in corporate governance, blending academic insight with practical solutions to improve the legal landscape (University of Jos).
He has often emphasized that “safety and integrity” form the essence of the law, a philosophy that underpins his leadership style and scholarly approach, aligning well with INEC’s core functions, such as compiling voter registers and overseeing electoral processes.
Amupitan’s predecessors at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) set significant benchmarks for the role. Justice Ephraim Akpata led from 1998 to 2000, handling the 1999 transitional elections that birthed the Fourth Republic . Sir Abel Guobadia chaired INEC from 2000 to 2005, overseeing the 2003 elections, which saw the registration of 60 million voters . Professor Maurice Iwu served from 2005 to 2010, managing the contentious 2007 elections . Professor Attahiru Jega led from 2010 to 2015, introducing biometric voter cards that reduced multiple registrations by 20% in subsequent cycles . Professor Mahmood Yakubu, who served from 2015 to 2025, supervised the 2019 and 2023 elections, where technology such as the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System debuted, accrediting over 21 million voters in 2023 alone.
Amupitan’s nomination follows reports in September 2025, which indicated that President Bola Tinubu had directed Yakubu to proceed on leave, thereby clearing the path for a successor .
The State House announcement of a new helmsman for INEC came from Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, on October 9, 2025.