INEC increases state offices overhead by 150%

The Independent National Electoral Commission has approved a 150 per cent increase in monthly overhead allocations to its state offices, just as it is also advancing plans for a comprehensive salary and welfare enhancement package for its staff ahead of the 2027 general elections.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, disclosed this on Tuesday in Gombe during the North-East zonal interactive meeting with staff and readiness assessment for the 2027 general elections.

Amupitan said the increased overhead allocation took effect on July 1, 2026, adding that the commission was also implementing reforms to improve staff remuneration, welfare, and working conditions.

“To eliminate financial strain and administrative bottlenecks at the state and LGA levels, the Commission approved a 150 per cent increase in monthly overhead allocations to all State Offices, taking effect from 1st July 2026,” Amupitan said.

The INEC chairman also announced that the commission had secured approval for the Consolidated Election Management Body Salary Structure, CEMBSS, which took financial effect on January 1, 2026.

According to him, the new salary structure separates INEC personnel from the regular civil service salary structure, reflecting the specialised responsibilities and risks associated with electoral administration.

“We successfully authored and secured approval for the Consolidated Election Management Body Salary Structure, completely pulling our workforce out of the regular civil service structure,” Amupitan said.

He added that the commission was at an advanced stage of implementing a comprehensive salary and welfare enhancement package covering all INEC staff, Resident Electoral Commissioners and commission members.

The package, he said, would ensure that field allowances and hazard compensation reflected prevailing economic realities.

However, the chairman did not disclose the financial value of the proposed welfare package or the specific amounts approved for the increased state office overheads.

Amupitan warned electoral officers against partisanship, corruption, absenteeism, and negligence, saying the commission would impose sanctions on personnel who compromised their professional responsibilities.

He directed Resident Electoral Commissioners and administrative secretaries to enforce strict attendance protocols across state and local government offices.

“Absenteeism, habitual tardiness, and unauthorised absence from duty posts will no longer be tolerated under any circumstances,” he said.

The INEC boss added that officials found absent without authorisation or negligent in their duties would face administrative sanctions.

The chairman stressed that the credibility of the 2027 general elections would depend substantially on the conduct of electoral personnel at polling units and collation centres.

“Partisan leaning, administrative negligence, financial impropriety, or compromised professional ethics will meet swift, decisive sanction under my leadership,” he vowed.

Amupitan further urged personnel to resist political pressure, financial inducements, intimidation and ethnic bias, insisting that electoral officers must remain neutral throughout the electoral process.

The INEC chairman said the North-East geopolitical zone had 13,965,475 registered voters, representing 13.51 per cent of Nigeria’s total registered voter population of more than 103 million.

He gave the breakdown as follows: Bauchi, 3,012,547; Borno, 2,765,165; Adamawa, 2,431,146; Taraba, 2,254,380; Gombe, 1,768,566; and Yobe, 1,733,671.

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According to him, Gombe State has 1,768,566 registered voters spread across 11 local government areas, 114 registration areas and 3,311 polling units.

He said the figures underscored the responsibility of electoral officials to ensure that eligible voters were not disenfranchised by logistical failures, administrative negligence or technological challenges.

“These 13.96 million registered voters across Bauchi, Borno, Adamawa, Taraba, Gombe, and Yobe are not abstract numbers on a spreadsheet. They represent living Nigerian citizens—farmers, traders, teachers, youths, women, and elders—whose constitutional right to choose their leaders in a secure, transparent, and dignified environment must be guaranteed without compromise,” he said.

Amupitan added that the commission was assessing its operational capacity across the six states to identify weaknesses and strengthen preparations for the general elections.

He disclosed that the three phases of the Continuous Voter Registration exercise conducted between August 2025 and July 2026 generated 10,772,421 new voter applications.

Amupitan pointed out that the applications had undergone Automated Biometric Identification System deduplication to identify and eliminate duplicate registrations and fraudulent entries.

The chairman also announced that the commission had introduced online voter registration, printable Permanent Voter Cards and a digital PVC location portal to improve access to voter registration services and card collection.

He said the preliminary register of voters had been published online following its nationwide physical display from October 9 to 15, 2026, allowing citizens to make claims and objections before the final certification of the register scheduled for December 15, 2026.

Amupitan urged eligible voters to collect their PVCs, stressing that the commission would work to eliminate administrative bottlenecks that could prevent citizens from exercising their franchise.

The chairman said the Presidential and National Assembly elections were scheduled for Saturday, January 16, 2027, while the governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections would hold on Saturday, February 6, 2027.

He noted that the commission had completed nine of the 14 major statutory milestones in its revised timetable and schedule of activities.

According to him, the North-East readiness assessment was designed to examine logistics, voter registration, technological preparedness, staff discipline, electoral neutrality and security arrangements.

He said the commission had also begun distributing new operational pickup vehicles to state and local government offices to improve mobility and election logistics.

In addition, Amupitan said an Electoral Logistics Committee, chaired by Rear Admiral Jamila Malafa (retd.), had been established to coordinate logistics for the elections.

The chairman said the zonal meeting would provide an opportunity for electoral officials to submit direct reports on operational challenges and preparedness across the six North-East states.

He urged staff to uphold the law and maintain public confidence in the electoral process.

“The path to 2027 runs directly through our hands, and we shall not fail the Nigerian people,” he said.

Arewa PUNCH reports that the meeting in Gombe formed part of INEC’s nationwide operational readiness assessment ahead of the 2027 general elections.