On Tinubu’s recommendation, Council of State approves Ojo Amupitan as new INEC Chairman
By BASHIR ADEFAKA
To be successful in his new office, the Professor of Law is expected by many Nigerians to live above loyalty to personality but the institution of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) he has been appointed by law to serve, and ensure that what he will do should not be influenced by interest of his appointor but what is required in the overall national interest.
The National Council of State in Nigeria, on Thursday October 9, 2025, approved the nomination of Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan (SAN) as the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had presented Amupitan, who comes from the North Central, as the nominee to fill the vacant position, following Professor Mahmood Yakubu’s exit after having served from 2015 till October 2025.
Disclosing this in a statement by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, after the Council’s meeting on Thursday, President Tinubu was said to have told members of the National Council of State that Amupitan is the first person from Kogi, North Central state, nominated to occupy the position and that he 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,” said Onanuga.
To be successful in his new office, the Professor of Law is expected by many Nigerians to live above loyalty to personality but the institution of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) he has been appointed by law to serve, and ensure that what he will do should not be influenced by interest of his appointor but what is required in the overall national interest.
The DEFENDER reports that 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.
