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By Gabriel Ameh
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, on Saturday 7th February 2026 toured several polling units across the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to monitor the ongoing mock accreditation exercise ahead of the forthcoming Area Council elections, with field confirmations showing that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) functioned efficiently within seconds.
The inspection began at the INEC Area 10 Office, where the Chairman held a brief closed-door meeting with the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) before proceeding to the Area 10 Polling Unit, Centre Municipal. Officials at the unit confirmed that the BVAS operated without any glitches during the mock process.
Prof. Amupitan then moved to Government Secondary School, Wuse Zone III, where he inspected two polling units and a training centre for ad hoc staff and Supervisory Presiding Officers (SPOs) preparing for the elections.
At Sagbwary Primary School, Dutse, the INEC Chairman visited Polling Units 003 and 064, where Presiding Officers demonstrated the accreditation process using the BVAS. At both units, the device reportedly completed voter accreditation within five seconds, while the entire process took about one minute per voter.
At Polling Unit 003, Dutse, 11 voters had already been accredited at the time of the Chairman’s visit, with more voters observed queuing to participate in the mock exercise.
The tour continued to Ushafa Polling Units 001 and 003, where similar results were recorded, as officials confirmed that the BVAS functioned effectively. However, there was generally low voter turnout across most of the polling units visited.
Speaking to journalists after the inspection, Prof. Amupitan urged members of the public to come out en masse on election day, assuring them that INEC is fully prepared to deliver a free, fair, and credible election.
“INEC is not a political party and not a civil society organisation to campaign for votes. It is the responsibility of political parties and civil society groups to mobilise voters and encourage participation. Our duty is to ensure that all sensitive and non-sensitive materials are available and that the process works effectively, which is why we are conducting this mock accreditation,” he said.
He emphasized that the mock exercise was designed to test the readiness of personnel and equipment, particularly the BVAS, to guarantee a seamless accreditation process during the Area Council elections.
The visit underscored INEC’s preparedness while highlighting the need for greater voter participation to strengthen the democratic process in the FCT.
