President Bola Tinubu has named Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan as INEC chairman, replacing Professor Yakubu Mahmood. The nomination was approved by the Council of State on Thursday and is now pending Senate screening and ratification.

A statement by Mr Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President for Information and Strategy, on Thursday, revealed that the decision to appoint Professor Amupitan was made during a meeting of the Council of State that was held at the State House and presided over by President Bola Tinubu.

The president presented Professor Amupitan to the Council of State as the most qualified candidate to fill the position previously held by Professor Mahmood Yakubu, who chaired the electoral body for ten years before stepping down on Tuesday after serving two terms.

According to the statement, Mr Onanuga said the council unanimously approved the nomination of the new INEC boss to head the country’s electoral body prior to the 2027 general elections. The appointment is subject to approval by the National Assembly before it can be officially confirmed.

The statement reads, “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu presented Amupitan as the nominee to fill the vacant position, following Professor Mahmood Yakubu’s exit. Yakubu served from 2015 till October 2025. President Tinubu told the council that Amupitan is the first person from Kogi, North-Central state, nominated to occupy the position and is apolitical.

“Council members unanimously supported the nomination, with Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo describing Amupitan as a man of integrity. In compliance with the constitution, President Tinubu will now send Amupitan’s name to the Senate for screening. Amupitan, 58, from Ayetoro Gbede, Ijumu LGA  in Kogi State, is a  Professor of Law at the University of Jos, Plateau. He is also an alumnus of the university.

“He specialises in Company Law, Law of Evidence, Corporate Governance and Privatisation Law. He became a Senior Advocate of Nigeria in September 2014. Amupitan was born on April 25, 1967. After completing primary and secondary education, he attended Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin, from 1982 to 1984, and the University of Jos from 1984 to 1987. He was called to the bar in 1988.

“He earned an LLM at UNIJOS in 1993 and a PhD in 2007, amid an academic career that began in 1989, following his National Youth Service at the Bauchi State Publishing Corporation in Bauchi from 1988 to 1989. Currently, he serves as the Deputy “Vice-Chancellor (Administration) at the University of Jos, a position he holds in conjunction with being the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Joseph Ayo Babalola University in Osun State. Among the academic positions he has held at UNIJOS are: Chairman of the Committee of Deans and Directors (2012-2014); Dean of the Faculty of Law (2008-2014); and Head of Public Law (2006-2008)

“Outside of academics, Amupitan serves as a board member of Integrated Dairies Limited in Vom, a member of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies Governing Council, and a member of the Council of Legal Education (2008-2014), among other roles. He was a board member of Riss Oil Limited, Abuja(1996-2004). Amupitan is the author of many books on law, such as 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). He is married and has four children.”

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