The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu has been directed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to proceed on compulsory leave with immediate effect.
The order came less than one month to the end of his five years second term as Nigeria’s election umpire. His tenure is expected to end October 21, 2025. No reason was however given for what prompted the early exit.
Newsmata.com.ng reports that Yakubu’s sojourn at INEC began October 21, 2015, when he was appointed by late former President Muhammadu Buhari, succeeding the then acting chairman, Amina Zakari. His appointment was renewed in 2020 by the same Buhari administration but has now come to a sudden end by presidential fiat.
In his almost 10 years in the saddle, Yakubu presided over two General Elections – the 2019 and 2023 polls. He also conducted several off-season governorship, states and National Assembly elections.
Though the elections he supervised had been largely controversial, he had to his credit some significant electoral reforms, notably the introduction of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Results Viewing Portal (IReV).
The president is expected to send the name of his would-be successor to the National Assembly for screening and confirmation, while in the interim, an acting chairman is expected to be named to fill the vacuum at the Commission.
There has been agitation by the civil society election situation room and well-meaning Nigerians for a more transparent process in the appointment of the head of the electoral body to elicit confidence and trust of the citizenry in the institution and subsequent elections.