Polls: The reasons the INEC board must suspend Yakubu — CSOs

Some civil society organizations, or CSOs, acting through the Democracy Protection Coalition (DPC), called on the board of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to suspend Prof. Yakubu Mahmoud as chairman of the commission due to the way the elections for the National Assembly and the President were handled.

It also encouraged INEC to pay attention to Nigerians’ complaints over the results of the elections on February 25.

The group expressed concern that voter indifference and a decline in youth enthusiasm and involvement in the political process could ensue if INEC continues to ignore Nigerians.

Convener and Executive Director of the PADDI Foundation, Mr. Eze Eluchie, briefed reporters in Lagos and requested that Yakubu resign.

In his own words, Prof. Yakubu, the chairman of INEC, “has lost the confidence of Nigerians and civil society regarding his ability to continue as an impartial umpire given his lack of remorse in the face of deliberate flagrant nonconformity with the Electoral Act and INEC’s Regulations for Elections regarding the BVAS machines; deliberate falsehoods and lies to Nigerians regarding the sanctity of the electoral process; and audacious display of impudence.

“Yakubu should immediately resign from his position as chairman of INEC, given that public confidence, trust, and belief in the electoral system and the electoral umpire is a crucial component of elections and that such confidence, trust, and belief in INEC and its current chairman have irreparably eroded. Yakubu should immediately withdraw himself from all involvement in any way in the administration of the upcoming governorship and state house of assembly elections in order to avoid further undermining the sanctity and integrity of those elections.

“In the event that Yakubu is unable to voluntarily resign from his position, the INEC board should make every effort to suspend Yakubu from his position until further notice, by which time the manipulations and improper behavior of the aforementioned Mr. Yakubu would have been addressed and corrected. Alternately, the Nigerian people should rise up and forcefully demand that this INEC chairman resign from office because of his egregious incapacity, lack of ability, and propensity for lying and questionable behavior when doing extremely sensitive duties.

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