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2019 Presidential Poll: Outrage As INEC Appoints Buhari’s Niece Collation Head …Nigerians, PDP Condemn Move …Amina Zakari About To Derail Democracy -Ohanaeze …Parties Can’t Dictate To Us -INEC
As the 2019 general election draws even nearer, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has appointed President Muhammadu Buhari’s niece, Amina Zakari, as the head of the election collation centre of the elections. Amina’s appointment has sparked outrage and condemnation, especially from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as well as other Nigerians.
Amina Zakari is to head a committee responsible for the national collation centre – the International Conference Centre – from where results of the Presidential election will be announced, INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu said during her inauguration.
But the condemnations over the development have continued to pour in, especially on social media with notable politicians such as the immediate past Governor of Ekiti state, Ayodele Fayose, ex-minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode and the PDP taking the lead. PDP described the appointment as “outright manipulation” and rejected it in entirety, the former Ekiti Governor, Fayose mocked INEC saying the commission should not only appoint Buhari’s niece but should also appoint one of Buhari’s children as Chairman.
According to happeningnownews.com, who cited Fayose, the ex-governor said, ”Instead of INEC appointing, Amina Zakari, a blood relation (niece) of President Buhari, as the Chairperson of INEC Advisory Committee and Presidential election Collation Center Committee, why not just appoint one of the President’s children as INEC Chairman?”
For Fani-Kayode, “Amina Zakari, Buhari’s neice and a member of his staff when he was Chairman of PTF has been appointed Chairperson of the INEC Advisory Committee & Pres. Election Collation Center Committee. Do you still believe that there will be a free and fair election in Nigeria on Feb. 16th?” Other Nigerians who decried the appointment said thus:
Alvin Hustleþ @AlvinHustle “Let it be known by all that INEC by appointing Amina Zakari to head the Collation center has rigged the 2019 Presidential election.”
Nwachukwuexcelingþ @Nwachukwuexcel4 “Replying to @vanguardngrnews Amina Zakari? What is going on here? Why must everything about this election tilt towards technical rigging?” Shedy®þ @ShedrackSaidu “The appointment of Amina Zakari in a sensitive position in inec is not entirely encouraging for our democracy.”
“Rogers harisonþ @rogersharison “The appiontment of AMINA ZAKARI as head of INEC Coalition Center is a prove that Buhari plans to rig 2019.” African Giant – LadiþVerified account @LadiSpeaks “APC did all they could to slander Atiku, it didn’t work Now they are so desperate that they have appointed Amina Zakari to head collation so she can easily change results! So much for integrity.”
Adewale Ajakayeþ @WAjakaye “PDP has so many dramas. They should go to ask the court to remove the woman because her uncle is a presidential candidate. If my father is a football player, I have no right to become a referee in his match, isn’t so? INEC’s job is a professional one.
” CrossÚþ @Elcrucifixio “With Amina Zakari as head of INEC collation centre, I don’t think there’d be any need for the February 16th election. The result has been decided before the poll. No wonder they haven’t been campaigning.””
Remiþ @Ceorhemz “Apart from Amina Zakari‘s close family ties with Buhari, the new head of INEC collation committee along with el Rufai was part of the Afri-Projects Consult, which carried out contracts for the (PTF) which Buhari headed under Abacha. Keep expecting a Free & Fair election.”
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday rejected the appointment of Mrs. Amina Zakari, a relative of President Muhammadu Buhari as chairperson of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC Advisory Committee and Election Collation Centre Committee, saying it is a ploy to rig the polls in favour of the President. Mrs Amina Bala Zakari Addressing journalists at the Presidential Campaign headquarters yesterday, Director, Media and Publicity of the PDP Presidential Council, PPCO, Kola Ologbondiyan said the party would not accept the choice of Mrs. Zakari for reasons it had enumerated in the past.
“Today (yesterday), we have been informed that the Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, apparently in furtherance of the plots to rig the Presidential election, has appointed Mrs. Amina Zakari, a blood relation (niece) of the APC candidate, President Muhammadu Buhari, as the Chairperson of INEC Advisory Committee and Presidential election Collation Center Committee.
Reacting to her appointment, PDP reiterated its recent claim that President Muhammadu Buhari was determined to rig himself back into power, hence the appointment of Zakari.
In a press statement issued by its spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, the former ruling party said: “We have called you up again today to alert Nigerians of another heinous machination by the Buhari Presidency and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to subvert the will of the people and rig the February 16, Presidential election.
“You will recall that we have been raising the flag on how the Buhari Presidency, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and some individuals at the echelon of INEC have been seeking ways to compromise our electoral processes and open the way for the allocation of fictitious votes to President Muhammadu Buhari, having realized that he cannot win in a credible, free and fair polls.
“Today, we have been informed that the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, apparently in furtherance of the plots to rig the Presidential election, has appointed Mrs. Amina Zakari, a blood relation (niece) of the APC candidate, President Muhammadu Buhari, as the Chairperson of INEC Advisory Committee and Presidential election Collation Center Committee.
“The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organization (PPCO) outrightly, vehemently and unequivocally rejects, in its entirety, the appointment of Mrs. Amina Zakari, President Buhari’s blood relation, as the head of the collation of results, in the same election in which his uncle, President Buhari, as a candidate, has displayed a huge desperation to win.
“The appointment of Mrs. Amina Zakari, who had been openly accused in various quarters as being the link person between INEC and the Buhari
Presidency in their schemes to rig the election for President Buhari, constitutes a direct violence against the Presidential election and the PDP will not, in any way, whatsoever, accept it.
“This is the same Amina Zakari, who headed the ICT Department of INEC at the time that department was accused of manipulating the INEC voter register to accommodate fictitious, underage and alien voters, particularly, in remote areas where they plan to allocate and announce conjured votes for President Buhari and the APC.
“It will interest Nigerians to note that this is the same Amina Zakari that was alleged to have played some roles in the 2018 governorship election in Osun state, where the electoral processes were flagrantly abused.
“In appointing Mrs. Amina Zakari to head the collation of this Presidential election, Professor Yakubu has confirmed that he has been compromised and that he has already succumbed to pressure by the Presidency and APC to open the way for the self-succession of President Buhari,” the party said.
Ologbondiyan argued that there was no way Amina Zakari “will not allocate votes to her blood relation, President Buhari, whom Nigerians have indicated clearly that they are not ready to return to office as President,” adding that with her “at the head of results collation, there is no way votes cast by Nigerians will count.”
It continued: “We call on all Nigerians and particularly the National Peace Committee to note that with the appointment of Amina Zakari, as head the collation of Presidential results, the INEC Chairman is setting the stage for a very huge political crisis, which is capable of derailing our democratic process.
“We also urge the United Nations and other global democratic institutions to take copious note of this noxious appointment by the INEC Chairman. “If the INEC Chairman wants a peaceful Presidential election, he should, with the speed of light, reverse himself on this appointment.”
The party warned of grave consequences should the 2019 elections fall short of the credibility test in the eyes of Nigerians and the global community. A source at INEC who declined to be named however said Amina Zakari was simply appointed to manage the situation room the collation of results of the Presidential election.
According to him, “The woman was appointed as chairperson of the committee in charge of the collation centre which is the International Conference Centre (ICC) Abuja and not committee in charge of collation of results. The INEC Chairman remains the Chief collation and returning officer for the Presidential election.”
PDP, however, assured that it remained “committed to a peaceful and credible process, but we will never, in any way, allow anybody to use any means, under any guise
whatsoever, to rig us out in this election. Not after it is clear that Nigerians have attained a consensus to rally behind our Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, as their next President.
“All we ask for is a free, fair, credible and transparent electoral process in which the votes of Nigerians will not only count but will be seen to have counted.
“Like Mr. President said during his 2019 budget presentation at the National Assembly, the world is watching us,” the statement added.
Also, Ppresident General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Chief Nnia Nwodo has told Nigerians to hold the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the Federal Government responsible should anything happen to the nation’s democracy.
This is as Nwodo called on Mrs. Amina Zakari, a national commissioner in INEC to resign from the commission because of her blood relation to President Muhammadu Buhari.
Reacting to INEC’s appointment of Mrs. Zakari as head of Election Collation Committee, yesterday, Nwodo said it was bad enough that Mrs. Zakari was allowed to continue to serve in INEC and worse by INEC appointing her in the new position. “It’s like Rangers VS Kano Pillars and Kano Pillars is allowed to nominate a referee.
It’s impossible for justice to be done. In a civilized clime Amina Zakari should have resigned,” he maintained.
“I expected the APC government having come to power through a free and fair election conducted by another president, they should not destroy the history.
“I call on Amina Zakari to honourably resign. Whatever happens to our democracy tomorrow, they (INEC and Federal Government) should hold themselves responsible.
“With continued membership of Mrs. Zakari in the commission, the corporate personality of INEC is seriously whittled down; making her head of collation committee is worse than anything anybody can imagine,” Nwodo said.
In its reaction, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday said it will not allow the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) dictate to it how it will conduct the 2019 general elections.
Speaking in a chat with newsmen, Rotimi Oyekanmi, Chief Press Secretary (CPS), to the INEC Chairman also warned the PDP to desist from its personal attacks on one of its National Commissioners, Mrs Amina Zakari.
“What is this crazy phobia about Amina Zakari? Why is one political party paranoid about this woman? There are 12 National Commissioners in INEC, why are they singling her out always? We are not going to allow one political party to dictate to us how to manage our affairs.
“If they have any problem with Amina Zakari, they should let us know. She was appointed by former President Goodluck Jonathan under the PDP government. She was not appointed under the present dispensation. Throughout the time she was there under Jega, this same PDP did not see anything wrong with her. Every national commissioner is entitled to having a renewed term and her term was renewed.
“This woman has a family, children and yet people are just attacking her for nothing. What did she do? Would they be happy if anybody is doing this to their wives?
“The way INEC is structured, not even the INEC chairman can rig the election in favour of any political party or any candidate in this country today.
“He is incapable of doing so because the system will not allow it. So, if the INEC Chairman cannot rig, where is the national commissioner that wants to rig?”
President Bola Tinubu yesterday signed into law four tax reform bills aimed at transforming Nigeria’s fiscal and revenue framework.
The four bills include: the Nigeria Tax Bill, the Nigeria Tax Administration Bill, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill.
They were passed by the National Assembly after months of consultations with various interest groups and stakeholders.
The ceremony took place at the Presidential Villa, yesterday.
The ceremony was witnessed by the leadership of the National Assembly and some legislators, governors, ministers, and aides of the President.
The presidency had earlier stated that the laws would transform tax administration in the country, increase revenue generation, improve the business environment, and give a boost to domestic and foreign investments.
“When the new tax laws become operational, they are expected to significantly transform tax administration in the country, leading to increased revenue generation, improved business environment, and a boost in domestic and foreign investments,” Special Adviser to the President on Media, Bayo Onanuga said on Wednesday.
Before the signing of the four bills, President Tinubu had earlier yesterday, said the tax reform bills will reset Nigeria’s economic trajectory and simplify its complex fiscal landscape.
Announcing the development via his official X handle, yesterday, the President declared, “In a few hours, I will sign four landmark tax reform bills into law, ushering in a bold new era of economic governance in our country.”
Tinubu made a call to investors and citizens alike, saying, “Let the world know that Nigeria is open for business, and this time, everyone has a fair shot.”
He described the bills as not just technical adjustments but a direct intervention to ease burdens on struggling Nigerians.
“These reforms go beyond streamlining tax codes. They deliver the first major, pro-people tax cuts in a generation, targeted relief for low-income earners, small businesses, and families working hard to make ends meet,” Tinubu wrote.
According to the President, “They will unify our fragmented tax system, eliminate wasteful duplications, cut red tape, restore investor confidence, and entrench transparency and coordination at every level.”
He added that the long-standing burden of Nigeria’s tax structure had unfairly weighed down the vulnerable while enabling inefficiency.
The tax reforms, first introduced in October 2024, were part of Tinubu’s post-subsidy-removal recovery plan, aimed at expanding revenue without stifling productivity.
However, the bills faced turbulence at the National Assembly and amongst some state governors who rejected its passing in 2024.
At the NASS, the bills sparked heated debate, particularly around the revenue-sharing structure, which governors from the North opposed.
They warned that a shift toward derivation-based allocations, especially with VAT, could tilt fiscal balance in favour of southern states with stronger consumption bases.
After prolonged dialogue, the VAT rate remained at 7.5 per cent, and a new exemption was introduced to shield minimum wage earners from personal income tax.
By May 2025, the National Assembly passed the harmonised versions with broad support, driven in part by pressure from economic stakeholders and international observers who welcomed the clarity and efficiency the reforms promised.
In his tweet, Tinubu stressed that this is just the beginning of Nigeria’s tax evolution.
“We are laying the foundation for a tax regime that is fair, transparent, and fit for a modern, ambitious Nigeria.
“A tax regime that rewards enterprise, protects the vulnerable, and mobilises revenue without punishing productivity,” he stated.
He further acknowledged the contributions of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reform Committee, the National Assembly, and Nigeria’s subnational governments.
The President added, “We are not just signing tax bills but rewriting the social contract.
“We are not there yet, but we are firmly on the road.”
The Senate has issued a 10-day ultimatum to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) over its failure to appear before the Senate Committee on Public Accounts probing alleged financial discrepancies amounting to over ?210 trillion in its audited reports from 2017 to 2023.
Despite being summoned, no officials or external auditors from NNPCL showed up yesterday.
However, representatives from the representatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and Department of State Services were present.
Angered by the NNPCL’s absence, the committee, yesterday, issued a 10-day ultimatum, demanding the company’s top executives to appear before the panel by July 10 or face constitutional sanctions.
A letter from NNPCL’s Chief Financial Officer, Dapo Segun, dated June 25, was read at the session.
It cited an ongoing management retreat and requested a two-month extension to prepare necessary documents and responses.
The letter partly read, “Having carefully reviewed your request, we hereby request your kind consideration to reschedule the engagement for a period of two months from now to enable us to collate the requested information and documentation.
“Furthermore, members of the Board and the senior management team of NNPC Limited are currently out of the office for a retreat, which makes it difficult to attend the rescheduled session on Thursday, 26th June, 2025.
“While appreciating the opportunity provided and the importance of this engagement, we reassure you of our commitment to the success of this exercise. Please accept the assurances of our highest regards.”
But lawmakers rejected the request.
The Committee Chairman, Senator Aliyu Wadada, said NNPCL was not expected to submit documents, but rather provide verbal responses to 11 key questions previously sent.
“For an institution like NNPCL to ask for two months to respond to questions from its own audited records is unacceptable,” Wadada stated.
“If they fail to show up by July 10, we will invoke our constitutional powers. The Nigerian people deserve answers,” he warned.
Other lawmakers echoed similar frustrations.
Senator Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) insisted that NNPCL’s Group CEO, Bayo Ojulari, must personally lead the delegation at the next hearing.
The Tide reports that Ojulari took over from Mele Kyari on April 2, 2025.
Senator Onyekachi Nwebonyi (Ebonyi North) said the two-month request suggested the company had no answers, but the committee would still grant a fair hearing by reconvening on July 10.
Senator Victor Umeh (Anambra Central) warned the NNPCL against undermining the Senate, saying, “If they fail to appear again, Nigerians will know the Senate is not a toothless bulldog.”
Last week, the Senate panel grilled Segun and other top executives over what they described as “mind-boggling” irregularities in NNPCL’s financial statements.
The Senate flagged ?103 trillion in accrued expenses, including ?600 billion in retention fees, legal, and auditing costs—without supporting documentation.
Also questioned was another ?103 trillion listed under receivables. Just before the hearing, NNPCL submitted a revised report contradicting the previously published figures, raising more concerns.
The committee has demanded detailed answers to 11 specific queries and warned that failure to comply could trigger legislative consequences.
The National Association of Nigerian Travel Agencies (NANTA) said over 17 million Nigerians travelled out between 2023 and 2024.
This is as the association announced that it would be organising a maiden edition of Eastern Travel Market 2025 in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital from 27th to 30th August, 2025.
Vice Chairman of NANTA, Eastern Zone, Hope Ehiogie, disclosed this during a news briefing in Port Harcourt.
Ehiogie explained that the event aims to bring together over 1,000 travel professionals to discuss the future of the industry in the nation and give visibility to airlines, hospitality firms, hospitals and institutions in the South-South and South-East, tagged Eastern Zone.
He stated that the 17 million number marks a significant increase in overseas travel and tours.
According to him, “Nigerian travel industry has seen significant growth, with 17 million people traveling out of the country in 2023”.
Ehiogie further said the potential of tourism and travel would bring in over $12 million into the nation’s economy by 2026, saying it would be a major spike in the sector, as 2024 recorded about $4 million.
“The potential of tourism and travel is that it can generate about $12 million for the nation’s economy by 2026. Last year it was $4 million.
“In the area of travels, over 17 million Nigerians traveled out of the country two years ago for different purposes. This included, health, religious purposes, visit, education and others,” Ehiogie said.
While highlighting the potential of Nigeria’s tourism, he said the hospitality industry in Nigeria has come of age, saying it is now second to none.
The Vice Chairman of NANTA, Eastern Zone further said, “We are not creating an enabling environment for business to thrive. We need to support the industry and provide the necessary infrastructure for growth.”
He said the country has a lot of tourism potential, especially as the government is now showing interest in and supporting the sector.
Ehiogie emphasized that NANTA has been working to support the industry with initiatives such as training schools and platforms for airlines and hotels to sell their products.
He added, “We now have about four to five training schools in the region, and within two years, the first set of students will graduate. We are helping airlines sell tickets and hotels sell their rooms.”
Also speaking, former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of NANTA, Stephen Isokariari of Dial Travels, called for more support from the industry.
Isokariari stated, “We need to work together to grow the industry and contribute to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product.
“With the right support and infrastructure, the Nigerian travel industry has the potential to make a significant contribution to the nation’s economy.”