Group condemns call on INEC Chairman to resign
By Emmanuel Oloniruha
The Nigerian Youth Network for Good Governance and Sustainable Democracy (NYNGGSD) has condemned the threat issued to Chairman, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu to resign within 14 days.
The NYNGGSD in a statement by its Board Chairman, Mr Constantine Ikechukwu in Abuja described the allegations raised against Yakubu as outrageous and suspicious.
The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) and civil society organisations (CSOs) under the aegis of the Coalition Of National Civil Society Organisations (CNCSOs) on Monday called on Yakubu to resign within 14 days or be forced to do so.
The organisations in a statement jointly signed by the CNPP Secretary General, Chief Willy Ezugwu and the National Secretary of the Coalition, Alhaji Ali Abacha, alleged that Yakubu failed to deploy Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).
Ikechukwu said contrary to the allegations being peddled by the CNPP, INEC indeed deployed BVAS for the 2023 General Election, which was attested to by everyone including the CSOs.
He added that both local and international observers also acknowledged that BVAS played a significantly credible role during the election, by preventing voting by proxy and preserving the accredited voters’ data.
Ikechukwu also expressed dismay on the CNPP allegation that Yakubu “constituted himself into an obstruction to justice” in the ongoing hearing at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT).
He said it was preposterous for an association that claims to be a “Conference of Political Parties” to openly disregard the rule of law and delve into a legal matter that is already being adjudicated at the PEPT.
“INEC announced the result of the 2023 presidential election and the political parties that disagreed with the outcome have filed their petitions which are now being heard by the Justices.
“Every self-respecting individual or group that understands the position of the law will not delve into matters contained in the petition that are before their Lords, the Justices, because it is sub-judice.
“In any case, why is the CNPP crying more than the bereaved? The only umbrella body of the registered political parties in Nigeria is the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), which has not issued any threat to INEC or any of its principal officers over the case at the Tribunal?
“The CNPP has an interest in the case and is clearly supporting a political party while pretending to be neutral”.
Ikechukwu also expressed concerns over CNPP’s allegation on the cost and manufacturer of the BVAS.
He said that the masterminds of the CNPP “hatchet job” missed all the points, muddled all the facts, displayed a lot of ignorance and were looking for evidence by crooked means just to smear the reputation of the INEC Chairman.
“Unfortunately, when they could not get authentic facts, they decided to concoct one.
“The BVAS is an INEC invention, designed by the Commission’s engineers and fabricated abroad. Every kobo spent by the Commission was approved and appropriated by the National Assembly.
“The Commission is not a one-man show where an individual decides on what to buy, where to buy it and how much to spend. The Procurement Act has its provisions that must be followed.
“The Commission produced an Election Project Plan and all the costs associated to the 2023 General Election are contained in the Plan.
“It is the public domain. Various sub-committees of the Senate and House of Representatives severally scrutinised the 2023 General Election Budget before it was approved.
“This was done with the INEC Chairman and National Commissioners appearing before the legislators to defend the budget whenever they are called upon to do so.
“Therefore, the CNPP should stop the show of shame of spinning libelous allegations.”
Ikechukwu alleged that it was clear that the CNPP was obviously disappointed and bitter that its preferred presidential candidate did not win in the election.
He said rather than accepting the result in the spirit of sportsmanship or allowing the Tribunal to do its work, CNPP resorted to media trial and mudslinging.
He said that while the 2023 General Election was not perfect, INEC complied substantially with the electoral laws in conducting of the various stages of the election and in declaring the results.
Ikechukwu challenged those wrongly accusing Yakubu of improper conduct to point to one section of the electoral law that he failed to comply with.
He advised aggrieved persons to familiarise themselves with the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act 2022 for a proper understanding of how elections were supposed to be conducted.