Council of State Confirms Joash Amupitan as INEC Chairman

The National Council of State has given its approval for Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan, SAN, to serve as the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

President Bola Tinubu presented Amupitan’s nomination to the Council to fill the vacancy left by Professor Mahmood Yakubu, who served as INEC Chairman from 2015 until October 2025.

Bayo Onanuga, the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, said in a statement on Thursday that the President highlighted Amupitan as the first nominee from Kogi State to hold the position and emphasized his non-partisan background.

The Council endorsed the nomination unanimously, with Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo describing Amupitan as a man of integrity. Following constitutional procedure, President Tinubu will now forward Amupitan’s name to the Senate for confirmation.

Amupitan, 58, hails from Ayetoro Gbede in Ijumu Local Government Area, Kogi State. He is a Professor of Law at the University of Jos, where he also completed his undergraduate studies.

He specialises in Company Law, Evidence Law, Corporate Governance, and Privatisation Law. He was conferred the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria in September 2014.

Born on April 25, 1967, Amupitan attended Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin (1982–1984), before enrolling at the University of Jos (1984–1987). He was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1988 and later earned an LLM from UNIJOS in 1993 and a PhD in 2007. His academic career began in 1989 after completing his National Youth Service at the Bauchi State Publishing Corporation.

Currently, he serves as Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) at the University of Jos. He is also Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Joseph Ayo Babalola University in Osun State.

At UNIJOS, he has held multiple leadership roles, including Chairman of the Committee of Deans and Directors (2012–2014), Dean of the Faculty of Law (2008–2014), and Head of the Public Law Department (2006–2008).

Beyond academia, Amupitan has contributed to the corporate and legal sectors as a board member of Integrated Dairies Limited, a member of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies Governing Council, and a member of the Council of Legal Education (2008–2014). He was also on the board of Riss Oil Limited, Abuja, from 1996 to 2004.

He is the author of several books on law, including Corporate Governance: Models and Principles (2008), Documentary Evidence in Nigeria (2008), Evidence Law: Theory and Practice in Nigeria (2013), Principles of Company Law (2013), and An Introduction to the Law of Trust in Nigeria (2014).

Professor Amupitan is married and has four children.