The Obidient Movement questions INEC chair Joash Amupitan’s whereabouts after Rhoda Gumus met an AU mission as acting chairman
On Wednesday, 16 September 2026, the Obidient Movement asked the Independent National Electoral Commission to explain the whereabouts and official diary of its chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, SAN, after National Commissioner Professor Rhoda Gumus appeared as acting chairman at a meeting with an African Union team in Abuja.
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The movement’s national coordinator, Dr Yunusa Tanko, signed a statement saying the episode had raised questions about why Professor Joash Amupitan was not at the commission’s headquarters.
The concern followed an INEC post on X on Tuesday, 15 September, which named Professor Rhoda Gumus as acting chairman while receiving an AU Pre-Election and Needs Assessment Mission.
Former Ethiopian foreign minister Demeke Mekonnen led that delegation, which was assessing Nigeria’s preparations for the 2027 general elections. Professor Rhoda Gumus is a serving national commissioner and is listed as such on INEC’s website.
Dr Yunusa Tanko said the movement knew of no public notice that Professor Joash Amupitan had handed over, even in an acting role. “As far as the Obidient Movement and Nigerians are concerned, there was no official communication of Professor Amupitan’s handover to anyone, either in acting or substantive capacity. This raises legitimate questions about the Chairman’s current location, official schedule and the circumstances surrounding his absence.”
The group asked INEC to say where Professor Joash Amupitan was, when he left Abuja, why he left, who approved it, and whether he had travelled abroad.
It also asked whether he had met, or planned to meet, President Bola Tinubu, the APC national chairman or any ruling-party official.
“As Nigeria moves closer to the 2027 general elections, the INEC Chairman cannot operate in secrecy,” Dr Yunusa Tanko said. He also questioned what he called the chairman’s “antecedents and strong affection for the APC.” “The era of the INEC Chairman having strategy meetings with the APC and the ruling party must be a thing of the past. Nigerians do not trust this INEC Chairman or the Commission he leads, so it behoves him and the Commission to not only be transparent and non-partisan, but to also be seen as such.”
He added that the commission belongs to the public and should not leave room for talk of secret political meetings.
INEC Chief Press Secretary Dayo Oketola could not be reached for a response when the original report was filed.
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The questions remain those of the Obidient Movement. They do not, by themselves, prove where Professor Joash Amupitan was or why Professor Rhoda Gumus chaired the AU meeting.
