X Post: Forensic probe has cleared me, says Amupitan
Prof. Joash Amupitan, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has insisted he has no link to the X (formerly Twitter) account that circulated a partisan post. Amupitan came under intense public scrutiny after some social media users unearthed an account bearing his name replying to a post in support of a member of […]
Prof. Joash Amupitan, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has insisted he has no link to the X (formerly Twitter) account that circulated a partisan post.
Amupitan came under intense public scrutiny after some social media users unearthed an account bearing his name replying to a post in support of a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The development sparked widespread reactions online, with many commentators and observes calling for his removal.
In a statement which his Chief Press Secretary, Adedayo Oketola, issued on his behalf, Amupitan had denied owning the account.
However, a fact check done by Daily Trust revealed that a real X account existed under @joashamupitan since 2022. The account’s digital footprint was consistent and traceable.
It was later renamed, locked, and labelled a parody account. Posts linked to the account appeared authentic and institutionally styled.
A new account with the same handle emerged in 2026, complicating attribution.
But as the controversy raged, Senate President Godswill Akpabio defended Amupitan, saying the posts predated his appointment as INEC chairman.
The nation’s number three citizen said at the time Amupitan allegedly made the post, he was still a university lecturer and a private citizen, not bound by public office restrictions.
“They brought out a tweet where they said the chairman of INEC said victory is sure. But he didn’t say victory is sure for APC. He did not say victory is sure for PDP. He just said victory is sure,” Akpabio had said.
“And the man said that it’s manipulated. Nobody wants to hear. But for me, whether it is manipulated or not, he said ‘victory is sure’.
“He was not chairman of INEC. He was just a mere lecturer. Anybody can support anybody who he wishes to.”
In a statement Oketola issued on behalf of Amupitan on Monday, he said a forensic investigation conclusively established that he does not own or operate any personal X account.
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According to the statement, all the alleged posts, replies, or statements attributed to the INEC Chairman on X (Twitter) were fraudulent, forensically unverifiable, technically impossible, and part of a coordinated disinformation.
The statement reads, “The X account was created in September 2022. However, there is no linkage between the X (Twitter) account and Prof. Amupitan’s yahoo or Unijos emails.
“Timestamp analysis shows the alleged 2026 reply, ‘Victory is sure’, was posted 13 minutes before the original post by @dayoisreal. This is physically impossible on any digital platform.
“Wayback Machine searches show zero records of @joashamupitan on X (Twitter) before April 2026.”
The statement said the alleged reply @joashamupitan to @dayoisreal’sh post is absent from all live and archived threads.
“On April 10, 2026, the same day the screenshots went viral, @joashamupitan was renamed to @sundayvibe00, set to private, and labelled ‘Parody Account’. This is consistent with deliberate impersonation and damage-control.
“At least seven fake Facebook and Instagram accounts using Prof Amupitan’s name and profile photographs were identified. This pattern suggests a sustained and coordinated impersonation operation.
“Accordingly, neither the earlier account nor the current account provides any verifiable evidence supporting the alleged 2023 posts.”