By EMMANUEL OLONIRUHA

Prof. Mahmood Yakubu has said that his decision to bow out of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was to pave way for the appointment of a new chairman.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Yakubu had, on Tuesday, stepped down and handed over to a National Commissioner, Ms. May Agbamuche-Mbu, as acting Chairman of the Commission.

NAN also reports that the brief handover ceremony took place during the Commission?s regular consultative meeting with Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) at the INEC headquarters in Abuja.

Yakubu said that his bowing out would also enable the person taking over to quickly settle down to the task of conducting elections and electoral activities.

He said that he knew the enormity of the challenges ahead, having been privileged to serve the commission for 10 years, with only a few more weeks remaining for him to serve.

?I have taken a decision and conveyed the same as provided by Section 36, Subsections 1 and 2 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, as amended.

?In the interim, I am handing over to one of the most senior national commissioners by date of appointment.

?Following consultation with other national commissioners, Ms. May Agbamuche-Mbu will serve in acting capacity pending the appointment of a substantive chairman of the Commission.

?I hope that this will afford the appointing authorities adequate time to appoint a new chairman.

?It will also enable the new chairman to quickly settle down to the task of conducting elections and electoral activities in Africa?s most demographically and logistically complex environment,? he said.

Yakubu expressed appreciation to members of the commission and RECs for the excellent working relations they shared.

He noted that since 2015, he had worked with 24 national commissioners and 67 RECs.

He said that he would forever cherish the support of successive secretaries and staff of INEC nationwide.

?Together, we innovated and managed the commission?s enormous responsibilities, sometimes on the verge of breaking down,? he recalled.

Yakubu also appreciated the support of the National Assembly, political parties, the National Peace Committee, civil society, the media, the labour unions, security agencies, National Youth Service Corps and other stakeholders.

?Above all, I thank Nigerians for their comments as well as criticisms which encouraged rather than discouraged us to persevere,? he said.

He noted that over the years, INEC, under his watch, achieved a lot in responding to challenges and introducing many innovations.

Yakubu added that the commission also consolidated the biometric register of voters and replaced many of INEC?s manual processes with digital platforms and applications.

These, according to him, include the nomination of candidates, submission of polling and collation agents by political parties, accreditation of national and international observers, and the media for elections, voter accreditation and result management.

He added that with the support of development partners, INEC had introduced various technologies to improve diverse aspects of election management, such as the easy location of election facilities.

Others were management of collation and returning officers, virtual training of electoral staff, management of political parties? finances and audits as well as the overall monitoring of elections using our Election Monitoring and Support Center, (EMSC).

Yakubu said while tremendous progress was made under him, a lot more still needed to be done.

He stated that the commission was already preparing for Anambra governorship election holding in November and the FCT Area Council election as well as Ekiti and Osun governorship elections in 2026.

He said that in addition to those off-cycle elections, INEC already commenced preparations for some of the major activities for the 2027 general elections, while awaiting the enactment of a new Electoral Act.

?The bill is currently before the National Assembly. It is expected that electoral reforms contained in the new act will necessitate further review of our regulations and guidelines, as well as the manuals for elections.

?Beyond these reviews, the commission needs to further clean up the voters? register, review the locations of some of the polling units, and allotment of voters to them.

?The management of party primaries is another major area of activity. You may recall that for the last general election in 2023, the Commission processed the nomination of over 20,000 candidates.

?Furthermore, election logistics involving the procurement, production and transportation of huge quantities of materials by road, by air and by sea are monumental undertakings,? he said.

In her brief response, the acting INEC chairman, Agbamuche-Mbu, commended Yakubu for setting high record during his tenure as the commission?s chairman.

?We acknowledge the significant contributions and achievements made by Yakubu during his tenure, in particular his hard work and dedication in serving our country meritoriously.

?We wish you God?s guidance in your future endeavours. As you step down, we pray for greater success in whatever you set out to do.

?We are confident that history will judge you very well,? she said.

Agbamuche-Mbu assured Yakubu that the commission would do its best to maintain and uphold the standards he had set.

?I pledge to uphold the integrity of the commission and work with utmost professionalism, dedication and in unity with the honourable commissioners, the RECs, the directors, all the staff of INEC nationwide,? she said.

The acting chairman also pledged to work with the stakeholders to ensure the success and growth of the commission.

Highlights of the occasion included presentation of presented two books entitled: ?Election Management in Nigeria 2015-2025,? a compendium of all activities carried out in the last 10 years under his watch and ?Electoral Technology 2015-2025.?

NAN reports that Yakubu, thereafter, signed his official handing over notes and presented them to Agbamuche-Mbu. (NAN)

? Immediate past INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, handing over the baton of leadership to the Acting Chairman, May Agbamuche-Mbu

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