The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has dismissed claims circulating on social media alleging that its Chairman, Joash Amupitan, operates an X (formerly Twitter) account and made partisan comments, describing the allegation as a case of digital impersonation.
In a statement issued on Monday, the commission said it conducted a detailed forensic investigation into the viral screenshots, which included an independent cybersecurity review and digital analysis using open-source intelligence tools, platform data, and identity verification methods.
According to INEC, the investigation confirmed that Amupitan does not own or operate any personal X account, adding that all posts attributed to him were fabricated and part of a coordinated disinformation campaign.
The commission noted that the disputed account, identified as @joashamupitan, was created in September 2022 but had no connection to any verified email or identity linked to the INEC chairman. It also highlighted inconsistencies in the timeline of posts, including a supposedly dated 2026 reply that appeared earlier than the original message it responded to.
INEC further stated that archive checks showed no evidence of the account’s activity before April 2026, while the alleged posts were also missing from both live and archived records.
The commission also pointed to suspicious activity on the same day the screenshots went viral, noting that the account was renamed and set to private before being labelled as a parody account. It described this move as an attempt to erase digital traces and mislead the public.
INEC concluded that the findings confirm the incident was a case of impersonation and urged the public to disregard the false claims.
