The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, has announced that 14 political parties will participate in the August 15 governorship election in Osun State.
Amupitan also raised concerns over reports of violence and threats ahead of the election, describing insecurity as a direct threat to the credibility and sanctity of the electoral process.
The INEC chairman spoke on Saturday during an interactive session with media executives at the commission’s office in Osogbo.
He disclosed that 32,000 National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members would be recruited as ad hoc election personnel through the improved INECPRES portal.
According to Amupitan, Osun State has 2,339,233 registered voters spread across 3,763 polling units, 320 wards, and 30 local government areas.
Earlier on Saturday, the INEC chairman led a delegation comprising national commissioners, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, directors, technical teams, and other senior officials on an inspection of the ongoing mock accreditation exercise across selected polling units in the three senatorial districts of the state.
The exercise was conducted to assess the performance of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) ahead of the election.
Amupitan described the mock accreditation exercise as a quality assurance process designed to test INEC’s technological systems under real field conditions.
He said the BVAS machines performed effectively during the exercise, with voter verification taking between 30 seconds and two minutes using either fingerprint or facial recognition.
“The dual-authentication nature of the BVAS has significantly minimised instances of non-verification, which was one of our primary goals,” he said.
The INEC chairman added that the commission had increased the number of BVAS machines deployed for the election from 4,427 to 5,130 following concerns raised by political parties.
He said additional devices would serve polling units with large voter populations, particularly in Ife East, Irewole, Egbedore, Ede, and Osogbo North.
Amupitan also disclosed that backup BVAS machines had been increased from 664 to 1,328 to enable quick replacement in cases of malfunction.
He assured voters that the commission’s technology had been strengthened to prevent identity fraud and manipulation of election results.
On security concerns, the INEC chairman said the commission was worried by reports of violence and threats but was determined to ensure a peaceful election.
“We will not allow the democratic will of the people to be subverted by fear or force,” Amupitan said.
He explained that INEC had adjusted its security strategy from reactive measures to proactive prevention through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES).
According to him, the commission is working with the police and armed forces to protect election officials, materials, and voters across the state.
He added that intelligence-led security measures had been deployed to polling units and collation centres, while community mediation efforts were ongoing to reduce tensions before election day.
Meanwhile, the Osun State chapter of the Accord Party has called on INEC to urgently review the configuration of BVAS machines following issues observed during the mock accreditation exercise.
In a statement signed by the state chairman of the party, Pastor Victor Akande, the party requested a comprehensive technical audit involving relevant stakeholders.
The party said the challenges observed appeared fundamental and urged INEC to address them before the election.
“With less than two weeks until election day, INEC must rise to the occasion and demonstrate genuine readiness for reliable, fast and transparent technology applications in the electoral process,” Akande said.
