The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, has said adequate funding is critical to providing the security and logistics required for the successful conduct of the 2027 general elections.

Amupitan made the assertion on Wednesday in Owerri, Imo State, while delivering a goodwill message at the sixth edition of the Conference and Retreat for Senior Police Officers, themed, “Developing a Nigeria Police Roadmap for Effective Management of Security During Elections.”

He said although INEC’s funding was constitutionally provided as a first-line charge on the Consolidated Revenue Fund, the scale of the commission’s responsibilities required sustained financial support.

According to him, INEC is responsible for conducting presidential, National Assembly, governorship and state House of Assembly elections, as well as voter registration and the registration of political parties.

He added that the commission also has statutory powers to request the deployment of security agencies during elections and voter registration, making security an integral component of the electoral process.

Amupitan said financial constraints could affect the ability of government agencies to fully execute their responsibilities.

“Sometimes, it is not what you would like to do that you are able to do because of financial constraints. The system does make allocations of what is available and what is affordable at a particular time for the expenses and appropriation of the agencies, including the police and also including INEC.”

The INEC chairman stressed that voter registration remained the foundation of credible elections, warning that an inaccurate or outdated voters’ register could undermine the inclusiveness of the electoral process.

He said election expenditure, including security and logistics, should be regarded as a collective national responsibility because elections conducted by INEC affect all three tiers of government.

Amupitan noted that adequate funding was particularly important for the deployment of electoral personnel and materials to local government areas, wards, registration areas and polling units.

He said even where security agencies successfully maintained peace, inadequate logistics could still undermine the effective conduct of elections.

The INEC chairman said security and logistics had been prioritised under his leadership, adding that the commission was working with government and security agencies to address operational challenges ahead of the 2027 elections.

He also highlighted the role of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES), describing it as a platform for coordinating INEC, security agencies and other relevant government institutions on election security.

According to him, ICCES, which emerged as a coordination mechanism after the 2011 general elections amid concerns over post-election violence, has evolved into a structured framework operating at federal, state and local government levels.

He said the Inspector-General of Police participates at the national level, commissioners of police at the state level, while divisional police leadership is represented at the local government level.

Amupitan called for stronger inter-agency coordination ahead of 2027, noting that the Nigeria Police Force remained the lead agency for election security.

He cited experiences from recent off-cycle elections as evidence of the importance of effective security coordination, saying security agencies had helped resolve incidents that could otherwise have disrupted the electoral process.

He urged stakeholders to draw lessons from recent elections, particularly in the areas of intelligence gathering, logistics and inter-agency cooperation.

The INEC chairman also said Nigerians expected a highly effective electoral system but must recognise that achieving such standards required adequate resources.

“In Nigeria, we want the best. We want our electoral system to be 100 per cent. But sometimes we don’t ask ourselves the question: if we want the nation to be perfect, there must be a cost for it.”

He therefore urged relevant authorities to provide the necessary resources to enable INEC and security agencies effectively discharge their responsibilities during the 2027 general elections.

Amupitan expressed optimism that the Owerri retreat would produce an actionable and forward-looking roadmap for election security, reaffirming INEC’s commitment to strengthening operational synergy through ICCES.

He charged senior police officers to maintain professional neutrality, strengthen intelligence gathering and ensure seamless inter-agency coordination to protect the integrity of the electoral process.

Also speaking, the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, urged the leadership and operational personnel of the Nigeria Police Force to provide strong support and synergy to the INEC chairman in the discharge of his mandate.

She stressed that effective policing support remained important to safeguarding the electoral process and ensuring free, fair, credible and transparent elections across the country.