The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced plans to ensure election officials and materials arrive at polling units by about 7:30am during the 2027 general elections.
INEC Deputy Director of Information, Wilfred Ifogah, disclosed this on Wednesday, October 7, during an appearance on AIT’s Kakaaki programme.
Ifogah said logistics and transportation were among the commission’s major priorities as it prepares for the elections, adding that INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, had warned against late arrival of personnel and materials because it could create tension and suspicion among voters.
“If you don’t, you find out that it creates tension and a lot of suspicion here and there,” Ifogah said.
According to INEC’s election calendar, the Presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled for January 16, 2027, while the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections will hold on February 6.
The commission said it had reviewed logistics challenges from recent off-cycle elections, including those in Anambra, the Federal Capital Territory and Ekiti, to improve its preparations.
During the August 2026 Osun governorship election, Yiaga Africa reported that INEC officials had arrived at only 78 per cent of the polling units it observed by 8:30am. INEC guidelines require officials to arrive at least one hour before voting begins.
Ifogah said INEC was engaging transport unions, including the National Union of Road Transport Workers, the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria and the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria.
The commission is also developing a transport matrix and plans to use Registration Area Centres to position officials and materials closer to polling units a day before elections.
In addition, INEC is introducing digital platforms to track election materials from the point they leave their origin to when they reach their destinations.
“If it’s not done, it is escalated, and you find out who is responsible and actually what led to it. So these are things that probably were not happening before, that we have brought in place now,” Ifogah said.
He, however, acknowledged that difficult terrain and other unforeseen logistical problems could affect timely deployment to some polling units. He added that officials could be replaced where poor performance was linked to human or administrative failures.
The latest preparations come as INEC puts the total number of registered voters at 103.43 million ahead of the 2027 elections.
