The grand finale of the Inter-Campus Debate organized by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) took place on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, at the main campus of the University of Abuja. The event was attended by INEC Chairman Prof Joash Ojo Amupitan, SAN, and four National Commissioners including Malam Mohammed Kudu Haruna, who heads the Information and Voter Education Committee (IVEC), along with May Agbamuche-Mbu, Prof Rhoda Gumus, and Prof Sunday Aja. The Vice-Chancellor of Uni-Abuja, Professor Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi, also graced the occasion.
The programme opened with the introduction of speakers representing the four institutions that participated in the debate: the University of Jos was represented by Sunday Amos and Esther Darlington; the University of Ibadan (UI) by Adekola Mayowa and Bolarinwa Israel; Bayero University, Kano (BUK) by Hauwa Umaimah Ibrahim and Hauwa Mbanwusi Francisca; and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) by Afam Ugwuanyi Udochukwu. There were four male and four female participants in total, with more than half being law students. The Deans of participating students were individually introduced to the audience.
A panel of judges led by Mr Seun Okinbolaye, anchor of the Politics Today programme on Channels Television, served as Chief Adjudicator. He read out the contest rules, including time allotted for main and backup speakers, before the Vice-Chancellor delivered a welcome address. A goodwill remark was then read by Malam Mohammed Kudu Haruna.
The event was livestreamed across four national television stations. At 2.30pm, Dr Tope Ojeme announced the first topic: "Post-Election Litigations Erode Public Confidence in the Electoral Process," proposed by Uni-Jos and opposed by UI. Uni-Jos won this semi-final round. The second topic was "The Not-too-Young-To-Run Act has significantly Improved Youths' Participation in Nigerian Politics," proposed by UNN and opposed by BUK. The lead speaker from UNN cited the rising number of youths who registered and collected their Permanent Voter's Card (PVC) after the Act came into effect as evidence of positive impact. The BUK speaker countered that what matters is not merely registration numbers but the tangible impact youths can make in the electoral process. BUK won this semi-final round.
In the grand finale, Uni-Jos proposed the topic "Technology Has Enhanced Transparency and Credibility of Elections" while BUK was asked to oppose it. Uni-Jos defended its position by citing Card Readers, BVAS, and IREV as tools that have strengthened election integrity. BUK speakers, both females dressed in hijab, argued that technology is simply a tool that can be used to make or mar the electoral process, depending on the character of the person deploying it. Hauwa Umaimah contended that even if technology could check multiple voting, it has not been able to check vote buying.
The high point of the debate came when each debater charmed the audience with articulate, confident delivery. The eight young debaters, according to observers, epitomized the best standards even by global benchmarks. The BUK team stole the show with brilliant arguments, logical presentations, eloquent analysis supported by statistical data, and the notable absence of notes or mobile phones to aid recall. From the audience's enthusiastic cheers, it was clear that BUK commanded the greatest support of the day.
While the judges collated results, the master of ceremony engaged the students in an open quiz competition. About twelve students were randomly selected to answer questions. One question asked: "What is the name of the INEC chairman and when was he appointed?" The audience was shocked when most students could not recall his full name or correctly pronounce "Amupitan." Even more striking was that none could mention his date of appointment. Correctly answered questions earned cash prizes, while those who missed received a handshake with the INEC chairman.
In his closing speech, Prof Amupitan praised the young debaters, saying that given their excellent presentations, he would have offered them automatic employment at INEC if they were graduates. He also extolled Malam Mohammed Kudu Haruna, crediting him with conceiving the inter-campus debate idea as his brain-child, and commended Mrs Victoria Eta-M Essi, Director of VEP at INEC, for ensuring no power failure disrupted the event.
Uni-Jos, BUK, UI, and UNN were announced as winners of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th positions respectively, receiving cash prizes of N3.5m, N2.5m, N1.5m, and N1m, along with plaques. The ceremony concluded with a prayer for continued intellectual growth among the youth, invoking Amin.