Diaspora Nigerians Protest Against INEC Chairman In London Over 2027 Election Fears

Diaspora Nigerians stage a protest against INEC chairman in London over 2027 election fears — and the confrontation in front of Chatham House on Thursday has now become the most talked-about video on Nigerian X.

The confrontation happened Thursday after Amupitan spoke at Chatham House about INEC’s preparations and commitment to court rulings, including on Atiku Abubakar’s potential run under the African Democratic Congress.

INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan, SAN, had travelled to London to speak at Chatham House, one of the world’s most respected policy institutes, to reassure the international community that INEC is ready for the January 2027 general elections. He spoke about INEC’s preparations, its commitment to obeying court rulings, and its neutrality ahead of the polls.

But waiting outside for him were diaspora Nigerians who were not reassured.

Protesters from the Obidient Movement cited concerns over voter register issues like duplicates and alleged ruling party collusion.

According to the summary of posts on X, protesters from the Obidient Movement confronted Amupitan as he left the venue, chanting, holding placards, and demanding answers over voter register issues. Their concerns were specific — duplicates on the voter register, the recent removal of over 1.6 million invalid registrations, and allegations that INEC is colluding with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to rig the 2027 election in favour of President Bola Tinubu.

In a post shared by Parallel Facts @ParallelFacts, the moment was captured with the headline: “ INEC Chairman, Prof. Amupitan Disgraced in Chatham, England.”

The video attached to the post shows Amupitan surrounded by protesters as he tries to enter his car, with voices shouting questions at him and security trying to clear a path. The clip has since drawn over 335K views, 4.7K reposts, and 9.7K likes, with supporters of the protest calling it a disgrace and supporters of INEC calling it harassment.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Amupitan Disgraced in Chatham, England. pic.twitter.com/a7M6UED7m5

— Parallel Facts (@ParallelFacts) November 12, 2026

Amupitan reaffirmed INEC’s neutrality, noting over 300 pending cases and recent removal of a million invalid registrations, as tensions build ahead of the January 2027 vote.

Inside Chatham House, Amupitan had tried to address those same concerns. He reaffirmed INEC’s neutrality, noting that the commission is currently handling over 300 pending election-related cases in court and that it had recently removed over a million invalid registrations — including 1,609,553 invalid and deceased records, with 873 deceased voters — as part of efforts to clean up the register.

He also spoke about INEC’s commitment to court rulings, including on Atiku Abubakar’s potential run under the African Democratic Congress, after a November 5 Federal High Court ruling voided the ADC’s leadership and Atiku’s presidential primaries — a ruling the ADC has since appealed.

For the protesters, however, those explanations were not enough. They argue that cleaning the register after the fact does not erase fears about duplicates, about PVCs printed abroad, about 2.9 million PVCs still delayed, and about whether INEC can truly be neutral when the stakes for 2027 are so high.

The London protest is part of a growing pattern. In recent weeks, diaspora Nigerians have become more vocal about the 2027 elections, organising protests, town halls, and online campaigns from London, the US, and Canada. For many of them, the 2023 election still hurts, and they say they will not watch quietly as 2027 approaches.

For INEC, the Chatham House confrontation is a reminder that its credibility is being tested not just in Abuja, but in London, in Lagos, and on X.

As of the time of filing this report, INEC has not issued a separate statement on the London protest, beyond Amupitan’s remarks at Chatham House.

What is clear is that as tensions build ahead of the January 2027 vote, the battle for trust in INEC is no longer confined to Nigeria. It has gone global — and London was just the latest front.