How Plot To Kidnap NYSC Members, Disrupt 2027 Elections Was Uncovered — Amupitan

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it has uncovered and foiled a plot by suspected criminal kingpins to kidnap, intimidate and harass members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) engaged as ad-hoc staff for the 2027 general elections.

INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, disclosed this in Lokoja, Kogi State, during an interactive meeting with commission staff as part of its readiness assessment for the 2027 general elections in the North-Central Zone.

Amupitan said the suspects were arrested through intelligence gathering and had been charged to court by the Department of State Services (DSS).

He warned that anyone found threatening, intimidating or attempting to harm electoral officials, NYSC members or other ad-hoc personnel would face the full weight of the law.

The INEC chairman said the commission would not compromise the safety of its personnel, particularly those deployed to conduct elections across the country.

He also said INEC was strengthening its security framework through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) to address potential threats before, during and after the elections.

According to him, the security arrangement involves coordinated operations among the military, police, DSS, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Customs, Immigration, Correctional Services and Federal Road Safety Corps across the six states in the North-Central Zone and the Federal Capital Territory.

Amupitan explained that INEC had adopted an intelligence-led security architecture known as the ICCES Tentacle, designed to extend security coordination from the commission’s national headquarters to local government areas and registration area centres.

He said the commission was also deploying Election Risk Management (ERM) tools through its Planning and Monitoring Department to identify vulnerable areas ahead of the elections.

He added that security risk assessments had been conducted across the North-Central states and would be shared with relevant security agencies to facilitate early intervention and strategic deployment.

The INEC chairman identified three major pillars of the ICCES Tentacle framework as mapping and mitigating security risks, ensuring the safety of electoral personnel, equipment and voters, and guaranteeing access to all polling units.

He stressed that election security went beyond physical protection to include cybersecurity and the safeguarding of technological devices deployed for the electoral process.

Amupitan further disclosed that special security attention would be given to polling units located within 500 metres of identified vulnerable locations.

He said peaceful elections, effective logistics and efficient results management were critical components of a successful electoral process.

The INEC chairman reiterated the commission’s commitment to ensuring that every polling unit remained a safe environment for citizens to exercise their democratic rights during the 2027 general elections.