By David Lawani, Abuja
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared that Nigeria’s elections would be nearly impossible to conduct without members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), as it unveiled plans to deploy more than 1.4 million corps members for the 2027 general election.
INEC Chairman, Prof Joash Amupitan, stated this on Monday during a courtesy visit to the Director-General of the NYSC, Brig.-Gen. Olakunle Nafiu, at the scheme’s headquarters in Abuja.
According to him, the electoral commission would require 707,384 ad-hoc personnel for the Presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, 2027, while another 707,384 staff would be engaged for the Governorship and State Assembly elections slated for February 6, 2027.
The figures bring the total number of personnel projected for both nationwide exercises to 1,414,768.
Amupitan also disclosed that an additional 52,446 corps members would be mobilised for governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states, as well as bye-elections in Nasarawa, Enugu, Rivers, Ondo, Kebbi and Kano states.
He noted that corps members have remained central to election administration since 1999, particularly as Registration Area Officers and Presiding Officers, with some states relying on NYSC members for nearly 90 per cent of critical polling duties.
“You provide the heartbeat of our field operations. When we speak of election manpower, we are essentially speaking of corps members,” Amupitan said.
The INEC chairman recalled that during the 2023 general election, more than 850,000 corps members and student volunteers participated in the exercise out of the 1.2 million ad hoc staff deployed nationwide.
He commended corps members for their resilience, professionalism and digital competence, especially in operating the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), which improved accreditation processes during recent elections.
“As 2027 approaches, full mobilisation and preparedness of NYSC members will be critical,” he added.
Amupitan also acknowledged the risks associated with election duties and assured that INEC was strengthening welfare packages, insurance coverage and security arrangements for personnel deployed during elections.
Responding, Nafiu reaffirmed the scheme’s commitment to supporting INEC, describing corps members as a reliable, credible and easily trainable workforce for national assignments.
He added that the emergence of digitally savvy Gen Z corps members would further improve election administration and technological operations in future polls.
The NYSC Director-General assured the commission of continuous collaboration ahead of the 2027 general election and other off-cycle polls across the country.
