ADC Youths Insist On Removal Of Amupitan As INEC Chair, Condemn ‘Arbitrary’ Leadership

The youth wing of African Democratic Congress (ADC), staged a protest on Thursday, demanding the removal of Prof Joash Amupitan as Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), citing the commission’s refusal to recognise the party’s leadership.

The demonstrators, led by the ADC National Youth Leader, Balarabe Rufai, marched from the party’s National Secretariat to submit a formal complaint through the office of the National Youth Leader, insisting that INEC’s position poses a threat to democratic participation ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The protests held at the INEC state headquarters in Makurdi, Benue State on Thursday, April 23, 2026.

Speaking during the protest, Rufai expressed strong dissatisfaction with INEC’s stance, stating, “As it is currently is, the ADC has no leadership and we the youths of the country have mobilised for the 2027 election. For INEC to say that they do not at all recognise the leadership of ADC, not even David Mark, not Rauf Aregbesola, not Ralph Nwosu is totally unacceptable, that is why we have come from the National Secretariat of the ADC to submit this letter through the office of the National Youth Leader.”

He further issued an ultimatum to the electoral body, insisting that the commission must either reverse its decision or its chairman should step down.

According to him, “It is either INEC reverses its decision, personally without court order or Amupitan who has become a spokesperson of the Presidency and APC should quietly exit office, the National Youth Leader of the ADC we are here on a procession, we are telling you that talk to us, listen to us.”

Rufai accused the INEC chairman of acting arbitrarily and without legal backing, calling for a public admission of error.

“We are telling you that it is either Amupitan should as the way he did saying he does not recognise arbitrarily without recourse to any court, the same way he should come out to tell Nigerians on National Television that he did this thing in error and the ADC has a leader,” he said.

The youth leader also raised concerns about alleged attempts to influence the political landscape ahead of the next election cycle, warning against what he described as efforts to impose a sole candidate.

“They are saying Tinubu will be sole candidate in 2027 and we are saying no, we will not accept that, Amupitan must go,” Rufai declared.

The protest highlights growing tensions between the ADC and INEC over internal party leadership recognition, a development that could have significant implications for party activities and electoral preparations if not resolved promptly.

As of the time of filing this report, INEC had not issued an official response to the allegations raised by the protesting youths

Earlier, ADC had said it would escalate its campaign against the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof Amupitan, announcing plans to submit petitions to foreign governments, the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), and other relevant institutions over allegations it described as damaging to the credibility of Nigeria’s electoral system.

This position was stated by its spokesperson Bolaji Abdullahi, in a statement seen by SaharaReporters.

Bolaji on behalf of the party also insisted that Professor Amupitan must immediately resign, alleging that recent revelations and what it called “incontrovertible digital evidence” have further undermined public trust in his neutrality as head of the electoral body.

According to the ADC, the controversy stems from “a recent revelation linking a pro-Bola Tinubu tweet of 2023 to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Professor Amupitan,” which it said “is not merely disturbing, it is a grave affront to the integrity of our electoral system.

The party maintained that in any democratic system, the credibility of an electoral umpire depends not only on independence but also on public perception of impartiality, warning that anything short of that standard threatens electoral legitimacy.