‘I have no X account,’ INEC Chair warns against fake profiles

By Omeiza Ajayi, ABUJA

The chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, has denied operating any personal account on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, dismissing as fabrication a viral claim that he endorsed a partisan post on the platform.

In a statement issued on Friday in Abuja by his chief press secretary and media adviser, Adedayo Oketola, the commission said the allegation was “entirely baseless, a total fabrication, and a figment of the imagination of its purveyors,” stressing that the chairman had “at no time engaged in partisan commentary, nor has he ever associated himself with any political leaning or activity.”

INEC described the timing as deliberate, saying it is “a desperate attempt to impugn the integrity and neutrality of the Chairman” at a critical moment when INEC is focused on electoral reforms and preparations for upcoming polls.

Beyond the latest incident, INEC disclosed that cybercriminals have been operating fake social media accounts in the Chairman’s name to defraud unsuspecting Nigerians, adding that several such fraudulent accounts had already been identified and reported to security agencies.

The Commission said the current fabrication was “merely a continuation of a criminal pattern aimed at exploiting the Commission’s profile for illicit gains.”

INEC said it is working with relevant security agencies and cyber-intelligence units to track those behind the identity theft and misinformation campaign and vowed to prosecute offenders under the Cybercrimes Act, which criminalizes identity theft and the dissemination of deepfake or forged social media interactions.

It urged the public to disregard the viral post entirely and to rely only on the Commission’s verified institutional channels and formal press statements for official information.