President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will on Thursday afternoon swear in Prof. Joash Amupitan (SAN) as the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The ceremony is scheduled for 12:00 noon at the Council Chamber of the Aso Rock Presidential Villa in Abuja, according to officials familiar with the President’s programme. “We’re preparing. It’s going to hold tomorrow,” one official said, while another confirmed it would take place around 12:00 or 1:00 p.m.
The event is expected to host key members of the Federal Executive Council, the leadership of the National Assembly, legal luminaries, civil society representatives, and senior INEC officials.
Following his swearing-in, Amupitan will hold his first official meeting with INEC directors at 1:30 p.m. in the commission’s Conference Hall, a notice issued on Wednesday by INEC’s Deputy Director of Publicity, Wilfred Ifogah, confirmed. Members of the INEC Press Corps have been invited to cover the meeting.
President Tinubu explained that Amupitan was selected for his apolitical stance, integrity, and impressive record of service. “Amupitan is the first person from Kogi State, in the North-Central region, nominated to occupy the position and is apolitical,” said Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
Amupitan, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Professor of Law at the University of Jos, was confirmed by the Senate on October 16, 2025, following endorsement by the National Council of State. He succeeds Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, who served from 2015 until October 7, 2025.
Council members unanimously supported the nomination, with Kogi Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo describing Amupitan as a man of integrity.
Born on April 25, 1967, in Ayetoro Gbede, Kogi State, Amupitan’s academic career spans over three decades. He earned his LL.B, LL.M, and Ph.D. from the University of Jos, where he joined the Faculty of Law in 1989 and became a full professor in 2008. He was conferred the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria in 2014 and is widely recognized for his expertise in corporate governance, privatisation law, and evidence law.
Amupitan has held numerous academic and administrative positions, including Head of Department, Dean of Law, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration), and most recently, Pro-Chancellor of Joseph Ayo Babalola University in Osun State. He has authored multiple books on law, such as Corporate Governance: Models and Principles (2008) and Documentary Evidence in Nigeria (2008).
Outside academia, he serves on the boards of Integrated Dairies Limited, Riss Oil Limited, and is a member of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies Governing Council and the Council of Legal Education.
Amupitan is married with four children.
