The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has come under fire from PDP presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar for pledging to conduct credible governorship elections.
Atiku criticised Prof. Yakubu for ensuring that INEC employees found to have been careless during the presidential election would be disqualified from participating in the March 11 governorship election. He described his comment as "medicine after death" and criticised Prof. Yakubu for ensuring this outcome.
Yakubu had pledged to oversee the strict application of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) during a meeting with Resident Electoral Commissioners.
"Any staff members who have been proven to have been careless, whether they are regular or ad hoc officials, including collation and returning officers, shall not participate in the upcoming elections. When prima facie proof of misconduct has been proven, RECs must also take quick disciplinary action, the INEC director said on Saturday.
In a statement released on Sunday by Mr. Phrank Shaibu, Atiku's Special Assistant on Public Media, criticised Yakubu's pledges as meaningless and unconvincing.
After overseeing the most disastrous elections Nigeria had ever experienced since independence, Atiku said, the INEC chairman was merely attempting to preserve face.
After INEC's disastrous performance in the election on February 25, he urged Yakubu to refrain from attempting to deceive Nigerians once more.
Nonetheless, Atiku has praised Mary Beth Leonard, the US ambassador to Nigeria, for acknowledging that the results of the elections fell far short of what Nigerians had hoped for.
"The INEC chairman is nothing but a hypocrite," declared Atiku. He allowed himself to be used, or he used himself, to undermine Nigerians' will after pledging to upload the results from voting booths in real time. You'll be shocked to learn that despite the election taking place seven days ago, the complete results have still not been posted on INEC's result viewing portal.
The election was so awful that it didn't live up to Nigerians' expectations, as noted again by a number of foreign media sources, observers, and US Ambassador Mary Beth Leonard. The chairman of INEC is attempting to assign responsibility rather than apologise.
"He is now attempting to preserve face after INEC's appalling performance at the fraudulent election on February 25, insisting that errant staff will be disciplined and would not be used in the March 11 governorship election. This is blatantly absurd. Does INEC intend to educate new employees to take the place of the allegedly errant ones within the next five days? Will he hire new employees or send some down from space?
"Prof. Yakubu ought to have the character to admit his mistake. In the same way that a fish rots from the head down, INEC has experienced this. The INEC Chairman should resign as his initial show of repentance rather than suspending any employees. A petition requesting that the US, Britain, and Europe impose a visa block on the INEC Chairman has already received over 300,000 signatures from Nigerians on Change.Org. You can see how Nigerians feel in general from this. Prof. Yakubu ought to be ashamed and cover his face. According to independent report.
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