Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Arewa Youth Groups Tackle Agbakoba On INEC Chairman’s Removal

Apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide and the Northern Emancipation Network (NEN) have faulted calls for the removal of  chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu.

A former chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA,) Olisa Agbakoba, SAN, had advised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to fire the INEC boss.

Agbakoba had praised key decisions already taken by the Tinubu administration, including the suspension of CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele, as well as EFCC chairman, Bawa Abdulrasheed and the uniform exchange rate but urged him to also sack Yakubu. 

In a statement made available to journalists yesterday by the national president of the Igbo group, Mazi Okwu Nnabuike, he urged Tinubu not to “throw away the baby with the bath water”. 

Okwu said though he agreed with Agbakoba on the other decisions taken by the Tinubu presidency, there was no need for Yakubu’s sack at this material time. 

The Ohanaeze youth leader was of the view that despite the shortcomings witnessed during the 2023 general elections, it was one of the best elections ever conducted in Nigeria history. 

He said; “In the same election conducted by Yakubu, we had sitting governors lose elections across the country; we had popular National Assembly members lose elections. This did not happen before in the country’s elections. 

“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 further advised that any attempt to remove Yakubu at this time was ill-timed, stressing; “Aggrieved candidates are before the election tribunals ventilating their anger; how then can we remove the INEC chairman on whose table the bulk stops? 

“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.

NEN in a statement which was issued by the chairman, Sulaiman Abbah, said it was unfortunate that Agbakoba, a SAN,  from whom ordinary sanity and decency were expected, should be so blinded by prejudice as not to acknowledge the almost universal recognition of the February 2023 election as most credible, free and fair.