ABUJA – The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has exposed what it describes as a coordinated disinformation campaign involving a fabricated X (formerly Twitter) account falsely attributed to one of its top officials, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN.
In a statement issued from its headquarters in Abuja, yesterda, the Commission said a comprehensive forensic investigation has conclusively established that Prof. Amupitan neither owns nor operates any X account, dismissing viral screenshots linking him to partisan political comments as “fraudulent, technically impossible, and deliberately manipulated.”
The controversy began on April 10, when social media posts alleged that an account bearing the handle @joashamupitan made a politically suggestive reply reading, “Victory is sure.” The posts were accompanied by purported digital evidence, including email, phone number, and bank verification data, which were widely circulated as proof of authenticity.
However, INEC said independent cybersecurity experts it engaged carried out a multi-layered investigation using platform data, digital archives, and open-source intelligence tools, all of which debunked the claims.
Among the most striking findings was a timestamp anomaly indicating that the alleged reply was posted 13 minutes before the original tweet it purportedly responded to—an occurrence the Commission described as “physically impossible on any digital platform.”
Further checks using the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine showed no trace of the account or its supposed posts prior to April 2026, contradicting claims that the account had been active since 2022.
INEC also disclosed that on the same day the screenshots went viral, the account was swiftly renamed, switched to private mode, and labelled a “parody account,” a pattern investigators say is consistent with attempts to erase digital footprints after exposure.
The Commission added that efforts to link the account to Prof. Amupitan’s known email address and phone number through official X recovery systems failed, while alleged connections based on BVN data and breach records were described as “logically flawed and forensically invalid.”
Beyond the X account, the investigation uncovered at least seven fake Facebook and Instagram profiles impersonating the professor, pointing to what INEC termed a “sustained and coordinated impersonation operation.”
Describing the episode as a threat to public trust and democratic integrity, INEC cautioned media organisations and the public against amplifying unverified social media content, particularly in an era marked by the growing use of artificial intelligence and digital manipulation.
“The fact that content goes viral does not make it authentic,” the Commission stated, urging stricter verification standards in reporting.
INEC confirmed that the matter has been referred to law enforcement agencies for further investigation and possible prosecution under Nigeria’s Cybercrimes Act, which criminalises identity theft and digital forgery.
The Commission reiterated that all official communications are issued only through its verified platforms, warning that any social media account claiming to represent Prof. Amupitan should be treated as fraudulent unless officially confirmed.
