Politics
INEC: Yakubu And Second Term Challenge
In 1998, General Abdulsalami Abubakar replaced the Sumner Dagogo-Jack led National Electoral Commission (NEC) with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and appointed retired Justice Ephrain Omorose Ibukun Akpata as chairman. Justice Akpata conducted the 1998-1999 elections that ushered in the present democratic dispensation.
The retired Supreme Court jurist was taken out of office by death on January 8, 2000 and was succeeded by Sir Abel Guobadia. After Guobadia came Prof. Maurice Iwu in June 2005 but was removed from office in April 2010.
Prof. Attahiru Jega succeeded Prof. Iwu as chairman of INEC in June 2010 and lasted till July 2015 when he retired from service and handed over the baton to Mrs Amina Zakari in acting capacity. And, of course, Mrs Zakari surrendered the office to Prof. Mahmood Yakubu on November 9, 2015.
As the end of the statutory five-year tenure in November approached, President Muhammadu Buhari forwarded the name of Prof Yakubu for re-oppointment and or confirmation for a second term in office by the senate on October 27, 2020.
There are some who argue that the re-oppointment of Prof Yakubu has nothing to do with his performance as chairman of INEC and everything to do with his success in delivering the personal electoral agenda of President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.
Those who hold this view point to the presidents’ seeming penchant for keeping cronies, longtime associates and political friends in office, irrespective of their inability to satisfy Nigerians, while relieving some others of their positions against popular approval of their performance.
To support their argument, they quickly recall the appointment of most of his cabinet ministers for a second term in office though Nigerians openly clamoured for their replacement even before they ended their first term due to a wide spread belief of their less than satisfactory performance in the discharge of their mandates.
Furthermore, they recall the dropping of the president’s first term Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu and his replacement with Timipre Sylva as Buhari’s lack of regard for expertise, competence and merit based on proven visible track record of performance.
Not least of all, this crop of citizens draw evidence in the presidents’ stiff-necked refusal to let go of the security chiefs in the country, not minding the deteriorating security situation and the hue and cry across the land for their retirement. It is on record that the senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has taken three resolutions on the same subject matter within a space of one year, yet the president has not seen the need to accede to the people’s demand.
However, the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) who went to the National Assembly to express their support for the screening and confirmation of Prof. Yakubu described his reappointment as a step in the right direction, adding that his achievements in office qualified him for a fresh mandate.
Bearing placards with inscriptions such as “All political parties in Nigeria accept Prof Yakubu’s reappointment as INEC chairman, commend Senate President and Senators for speedy screening action”, “All political parties in Nigeria say President Buhari’s reappointment of Prof Mahmood Yakubu as INEC chairman will help consolidate the ongoing reforms in INEC, especially electronic voting”, they urged the lawmakers to make haste in signing off on Prof Yakubu’s confirmation, adding that even as opposition, they were not prepared to play politics with everything.
Speaking to newsmen on behalf of the group at the NASS complex in Abuja, the National Chairman of Action Alliance, Kenneth Udeze commended Prof Yakubu for his innovation in the recently concluded Edo and Ondo governorship elections, pointing out that the electronic transmission of results from the polling units introduced by the INEC chairman was worthy of praise.
“He has done well. One thing is to have a team and another to have a good man at the head”, he said and urged the chairman to carry further the success achieved at the Edo and Ondo guber polls to the forthcoming 2023 general elections.
Earlier, the Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC) had raised the alarm that it had uncovered a plot by two serving ministers in President Buhari’s cabinet to terminate the emergence of Prof Yakubu as INEC chairman a second time, using the courts.
According to IPAC, “a few desperate politicians, particularly those in the cabinet of the president, have conspired yet again to desecrate the temple of justice, the institution of the judiciary, like they did in the removal of the former Chief Justice of Nigeria, to hijack the legislative powers of the Senate to screen and confirm the nominee.
“We have uncovered a deadly plot to procure a midnight court order to destabilize the electoral stability of the country and throw the electoral body into leadership vacuum and challenges. This plot is being secretly spearheaded by those who parade as loyalists of Mr President in the day time but wear a treacherous dress to undo the president and sabotage his agenda in pursuit of a desperate ambition to be president and governor”.
Speaking to the senators during his screening, Prof. Yakubu regretted his postponement of the 2019 general election, by one week. He said the postponement was a major unfortunate incident in his tenure from which he learnt a lot and expressed the hope that such a situation would not arise again.
The chief electoral umpire in the country also promised the senators that if given a second chance, he would do his best to deliver on reforming the commission to meet the needs of millions of Nigerians for transparent and credible elections in Nigeria.
Ofcourse, on Tuesday, December 1, the Senate in plenary gave its nod for a five-year second term in office for Prof Mahmood Yakubu as chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and on Wednesday, December 9, 2020, he was sworn into office at the Executive Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja by President Muhammadu Buhari.
“We have clearly demonstrated in recent elections that elections are getting better and they will continue to get better.
“The National Assembly is holding a public hearing on the amendment of the electoral legal framework. This is important and this time around, working with the National Assembly, we’ll ensure a speedy passage of the amendment bill and once it is assented to, it will help us enormously in confronting the challenges ahead.
“The preparations for 2023 general election have proceeded in earnest. We need certainty and therefore the electoral framework is fundamental, without which we cannot formulate our regulations and guidelines”, Prof. Yakubu said after taking his oath of office.
While there are good reasons to be hopeful that the electoral fortunes of the country could get better, even under the second tenure of Prof. Yakubu, it is to be noted that his first tenure was characterized by a string of inconclusive elections, allegations and counter allegations of vote buying and sundry complaints of electoral offenses as INEC remained unable to address the situation decisively.
Meanwhile, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan has pledged to pass the Electoral Act Amendment Bill in the first quarter of 2021 and also give legal backing to the use of the electronic card reader.
With this in place, Nigerians are high in expectation that Prof. Yakubu, the first to get a second tenure in the office of the chief electoral umpire, will have no excuses but to work to realize their electoral dreams and guarantee the country a stable democratic experience.
By: Opaka Dokubo
Governor Douye Diri has set a target of at least one million votes for President Bola Tinubu in Bayelsa State in the 2027 presidential election, while charging the newly inaugurated All Progressives Congress (APC) State Campaign Council to prioritise reconciliation, party unity and collective electoral mobilisation.
Governor Diri gave the charge at the inauguration of the 20-member campaign council at the APC secretariat in Yenagoa, where he warned that internal divisions could undermine the party’s efforts to secure victory for President Tinubu and other candidates at the federal and state levels.
Governor Diri urged party members who were not appointed to the council to support its activities by taking the APC’s message to communities, wards and polling units across the state.
He specifically charged the campaign team to mobilise at least one million votes for President Tinubu, arguing that Bayelsa’s voting strength had increased and should be reflected in the 2027 election results.
“I give you a target that in Bayelsa, we must not bring less than one million votes for Mr President. You are going to campaign, and you have a lot to talk about the President. He has done so much for our people,” the governor said.
He listed the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, the second phase of the Nembe-Brass Road, interventions in the power sector, federal appointments for Bayelsa indigenes and the establishment of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy among the achievements the campaign should present to voters.
The governor particularly praised President Tinubu for the coastal highway project, arguing that it reflected federal attention to the development needs of coastal communities.
“No president, alive or dead, has remembered the coastal people and coastal states to say let us do this signature project from Lagos to Calabar. The first president to think about it is Bola Tinubu, and those were the demands of the Ijaw people,” he said.
Governor Diri also expressed hope that a second term for President Tinubu would provide an opportunity to advance demands for fiscal federalism, greater resource control and state policing, which he described as longstanding aspirations of the Niger Delta.
He said the President had shown indications of addressing some of the demands of younger Nigerians and argued that re-election would allow the administration to consolidate its reforms.
The governor further cautioned campaigners against personal attacks and abusive exchanges with political opponents, insisting that the APC should focus its campaign on issues, policies and achievements.
The governor’s mobilisation directive comes amid criticism from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which has questioned his commitment to President Tinubu’s re-election campaign, alleging that APC campaign billboards erected across Yenagoa promote other party candidates without featuring the President.
The PDP, through its Publicity Secretary, Mr Ikaebimo Mark, said the billboards showed Governor Diri urging voters to support APC candidates for the National Assembly and State House of Assembly elections without identifying President Tinubu as the party’s presidential candidate.
Mr Mark described the omission as an indication that the governor was not fully aligned with the APC’s national leadership.
“When we said that the governor, Senator Douye Diri, is not supporting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, we knew exactly what we were saying. Now Governor Douye Diri has erected APC campaign billboards across Bayelsa State without Tinubu’s picture. He is even afraid to associate himself with the photograph of the presidential candidate of his own party. How can this governor claim to be supporting President Tinubu?” he said.
The PDP, however, maintained that the governor’s public campaign posture raised questions about his commitment to the President’s re-election bid. Its allegation over the billboards now places the issue of the relationship between the state APC leadership and the party’s national campaign among the political questions likely to feature in Bayelsa’s preparations for 2027.
The PDP’s allegation has introduced a fresh political dimension to the APC’s preparations in Bayelsa, even as Governor Diri publicly called on party leaders and members to close ranks and mobilise support for all its candidates.
“Every person picked as a member of this campaign council was carefully scrutinised. I want to tell you that our campaign team is loaded. We parade the best candidates among all the parties in Bayelsa State, and there is no doubt about that,” he said.
He urged members to remain focused and united, warning that political opponents could exploit any divisions within the party.
“Our unity is very important because they would want to feast on our disunity. We will not give them that opportunity. Please, as you carry out this assignment, do not take your eyes off the target,” Hon. Ogoriba said.
SP Edafe explained that during the meeting, the organisers were briefed on the identified security threats and advised against embarking on an open-road procession.
Instead, the police reportedly recommended that the political activities be conducted at a designated venue where adequate security arrangements could be provided.
However, the Command alleged that the organisers disregarded the security advice and proceeded with the road procession.
Meanwhile, the Delta State Government has condemned the political violence that erupted in Asaba, the state capital, on Saturday, confirming that one person was killed while four others sustained serious injuries.
The government described the incident as unfortunate and unacceptable, warning political parties and their supporters against actions capable of threatening public peace, security and democratic participation in the state.
In a statement issued by the Commissioner for Works (Rural Roads) and Public Information, Mr Charles Aniagwu, the government reiterated its zero tolerance for political violence, intimidation and other forms of political misconduct.
Mr Aniagwu said the government had repeatedly cautioned political parties against engaging in activities capable of disrupting the peace, insisting that the incident could have been avoided if the organisers had followed security advice.
According to him, the police had advised the organisers to cancel the proposed street march and instead conduct their political campaign at a designated venue where adequate security arrangements could be provided.
He expressed concern that the advice was allegedly disregarded, resulting in a confrontation that claimed one life and left four other people seriously injured.
The government subsequently called on the police to conduct a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the violence and ensure that anyone found culpable is brought to justice.
Mr Aniagwu further warned that the state government would not tolerate politically motivated attacks against any individual, regardless of political affiliation.
He maintained that Delta State remained safe for residents and visitors, stressing that the government would not allow the actions of individuals or groups to undermine the prevailing peace and security in the state.
The government also urged political parties, their leaders and supporters to conduct their political activities within the confines of the law and demonstrate respect for human life, public order and the rights of other citizens.
The latest development follows an attack on supporters of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) during a political procession in Asaba, which reportedly left several participants injured and campaign vehicles vandalised.
The government’s condemnation comes amid growing concerns over political violence and the safety of opposition supporters as political activities intensify ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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