The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday said a forensic investigation has shown that claims that its Chairman, Joash Amupitan, operates an X (formerly Twitter) account and made a partisan post are a case of digital impersonation.
In a statement, the commission said the viral allegation, circulated through screenshots on social media, was subjected to a detailed forensic review involving a cybersecurity expert and multiple verification tools.
According to INEC, the investigation deployed X platform data analysis, internet archive records, open-source intelligence tools, identity forensics, and cross-platform checks.
“The findings show that Prof. Amupitan does not operate any personal X account. All posts attributed to him are fraudulent, forensically unverifiable, technically impossible, and part of a coordinated disinformation effort,” the commission said.
It explained that the disputed account, @joashamupitan, was created in September 2022 but had no connection to the chairman’s verified email addresses.
INEC further said timestamp analysis exposed inconsistencies, including an alleged 2026 reply, “Victory is sure,” which appeared 13 minutes before the original post it was said to be responding to.
The commission also noted that checks on the Wayback Machine showed no record of the account before April 2026, while the alleged reply was absent from both live and archived versions of the thread.
Describing a sequence of actions on April 10, 2026—the same day the screenshots went viral—INEC said the account was renamed to @sundayvibe00, switched to private, and tagged as a parody account.
“This is clearly a damage-control tactic by an impersonator seeking to eliminate a digital trail. The self-application of the ‘Parody’ label is particularly notable. It constitutes an implicit admission that the account was never Prof. Amupitan’s genuine personal account,” the statement signed by the chairman’s media aide, Adedayo Oketola, added.
The commission also disclosed that at least seven fake Facebook and Instagram accounts using Amupitan’s name and photographs were discovered, describing it as “a sustained and coordinated impersonation operation.”
On claims linking the account to the chairman’s email and phone number, INEC said recovery tests on the X platform failed to establish any connection.
“All attempts by the maligned actors failed. The X platform would have confirmed linkage had any genuine association existed. Therefore, there is no linkage between the email account and the X account,” it said.
It added that while the email address [amupitanj@yahoo.com](mailto:amupitanj@yahoo.com) was verified through University of Jos records and legal directories, no forensic link was found between it and the disputed account.
On the phone number allegedly tied to the account, INEC said Bank Verification Number (BVN) data only confirmed ownership of the number, but not its connection to any social media account.
“A phone number appearing in a BVN record cannot be used to establish social media account ownership. The public conclusion drawn that this phone number is his, therefore this X account belongs to him, is a logical fallacy, not forensic proof,” it said.
INEC maintained that both its internal review and independent forensic analysis reached the same conclusion, stressing that the posts were fabricated.
“The forensic evidence is comprehensive, multi-sourced, and unambiguous. The posts attributed to Prof. Amupitan on X are fabricated,” the commission stated.
It urged the public to avoid sharing unverified screenshots, warning of the dangers of digital manipulation, artificial intelligence, and deepfake content.
The commission also said the forensic report had been forwarded to law enforcement agencies for investigation and possible prosecution under the Cybercrimes Act.
“Lastly, Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan, SAN, does not operate any personal account on the X platform,” INEC added.
The allegation had surfaced from viral screenshots claiming the INEC chairman, appointed and sworn in by President Bola Tinubu five months ago, made a partisan post in support of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), triggering widespread reactions online.
