Apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide, has faulted calls for the removal of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.
It would be recalled that the former Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Olisa Agbakoba, had recently advised President Bola Tinubu to fire Yakubu.
Agbakoba had praised key decisions already taken by the Tinubu administration, including the sack of Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, as well as Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, and the uniform exchange rate.
But in a statement issued at the weekend by the National President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide, Mazi Okwu Nnabuike, he urged Tinubu not to throw away the baby with the bath water.
While agreeing with Agbakoba on the other decisions taken by the Tinubu Presidency, Okwu argued that there was no need for Yakubu’s sack at this material time.
He said, “Despite the shortcomings we witnessed during the 2023 general elections, it was one of the best elections ever conducted in Nigeria’s history.
“In the same election conducted by Yakubu, we had sitting governors lose elections across the country; we had popular National Assembly members lose election. This did not happen before in the country’s election.
“We are not making excuses for the lapses during the elections, but it is wrong to totally disparage the efforts of the Commission.
“There is no perfect election in any part of the world, even the United States, which prides itself as the capital of world democracy.”
Okwu noted that any attempt to remove Yakubu at this time was ill-timed, stressing that “aggrieved candidates are before the election tribunals ventilating their anger; how then can we remove the INEC Chairman on whose table the bulk stops?
He maintained that Yakubu should be allowed to remain as the INEC helmsman at least pending the conclusion of the cases.”
He further advised that efforts should be made to improve on the gains made during the 2023 general elections.
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