Nigerians Protest In London, Block INEC Chairman’s Vehicle, Demand Resignation
Nigerians protesting in London on Thursday surrounded and blocked the vehicle conveying the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Joash Amupitan, demanding his resignation over alleged irregularities in the preliminary voters’ register ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The demonstrators confronted the INEC chairman outside Chatham House, where he had attended a discussion on Nigeria’s preparations for the 2027 elections.
Videos of the incident showed protesters surrounding the black vehicle conveying Amupitan, shouting at him and demanding that he come out to address their concerns.
Some of the demonstrators accused the electoral commission of compromising its independence and favouring President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
They also described INEC as a criminal organisation and called for Amupitan’s immediate resignation, citing alleged multiple voter registrations, questionable polling units and photographs suspected to have been generated or manipulated using artificial intelligence.
The chairman remained inside the vehicle as the protesters continued their demonstration.
The confrontation followed growing criticism of INEC over the preliminary voters’ register released ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The controversy intensified after questionable entries, including photographs suspected to have been generated using artificial intelligence, circulated publicly, raising concerns about the credibility of the registration process.
On November 9, Amupitan disclosed that the commission had removed 1,608,660 invalid voter registrations following a review of the 2025/2026 Continuous Voter Registration exercise.
He also announced the removal of 873 records belonging to individuals verified to be deceased.
The INEC chairman further disclosed that 54 individuals across 10 states had been identified over alleged involvement in registration irregularities and could face disciplinary action, including possible prosecution.
According to the commission, the identified infractions included suspected multiple registrations, substituted photographs and violations of established registration procedures.
INEC, however, explained that some questionable entries circulating on social media were linked to previous registration exercises dating back to 2011 and were not necessarily products of the latest registration exercise.
The London protest came as Amupitan participated in a discussion organised by Chatham House in partnership with the Kimpact Development Initiative, focusing on Nigeria’s democratic future and preparations for the 2027 elections.
During the engagement, the INEC chairman acknowledged that technical problems associated with the 2023 general elections had affected public confidence in the commission.
He also defended his leadership, pointing to improvements recorded during recent off-cycle elections in Anambra and Osun states.
Amupitan assured Nigerians that INEC was introducing additional safeguards to prevent inaccurate polling unit results from being uploaded to its Result Viewing Portal (IReV) during the 2027 elections.
He also addressed concerns about the independence of the electoral commission, pledging not to accept any political or diplomatic appointment after completing his tenure.
The chairman said accepting such an appointment could undermine public confidence in his neutrality.
The demonstration highlights the growing scrutiny facing INEC as preparations intensify for the 2027 general elections, with the commission under pressure to address concerns about the credibility of the voters’ register and restore public confidence in the electoral process.
