AMUPITAN: REFLECTIONS ON THAT “CHATHAM HOUSE” HECKLING

The Chairman of INEC, Tunde Olusunle, was recently invited to speak at Chatham House in London where he discussed Nigeria's 2027 elections and their democratic trajectory. However, his arrival was met with a hostile crowd outside his vehicle who hurled insults and called him a fraud. This ambush should trouble every democrat as it showed a deeper habit of personalizing institutional failure and destroying the person in the hope that the institution will heal itself.

The protesters had mistaken the messenger for the malady, revealing a pattern of Nigerians who have often watched elections disappoint them and now question the integrity of the 2025/2026 Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise. INEC removed 1.6 million invalid registrations, and while this is a damning admission, it is not a cover-up.

The Commission has exposed its wound and begun to clean it in public, starting with the first test of objectivity - distinguishing between a problem discovered and one created. Amupitan has not merely talked about reform but has run elections, delivering three off-cycle governorship elections and 16 legislative by-elections. The results reflected the popular will, and the outcomes cut across party lines.

This is the beginning of a culture of trust, not through grand speeches but through small, repeatable acts of competence. Finally, character. Amupitan entered the Commission with the habits of the lecture room, and at Chatham House, he remained restrained and pledged not to accept any appointment from anyone after his tenure.