New INEC Chair Will Inherit Burden Of Unresolved Matters, Says Ex-Commissioner

The erstwhile National Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Dr Mustapha Lecky, has said that the recently appointed Chairman of the Commission, Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan, volition inherit a fig of bequest burdens and reputational challenges that person lingered since the 2023 wide election.

Dr Lecky stated this connected Thursday nighttime portion speaking connected Channels TV existent affairs programme, ‘Politics Today’, pursuing support of the information of Prof. Amupitan by the National Council of State earlier connected Thursday.

Lecky explained that the astir pressing of the challenges was the commission’s damaged nationalist representation pursuing the 2023 wide election.

“There is nary question that the committee suffered a large woody of reputational shortage and harm from the past election, particularly due to the fact that of the mode the collations and declarations were handled.

“INEC inflicted connected itself an wounded that was intelligibly avoidable, and it lingered without punctual correction by the outgoing leadership,” helium stated.

He stressed that estimation is cardinal to the credibility of immoderate electoral process. “Reputation is precise important for immoderate electoral process. When radical determine whether oregon not to judge an predetermination outcome, it tin trigger a full scope of consequences, immoderate of which whitethorn beryllium unsalvageable.

“People enactment based connected emotion and tin instrumentality matters into their ain hands, which whitethorn pb to unit and unpleasant outcomes,” helium said.

While acknowledging that the 2023 elections were not wholly flawed, Lecky maintained that their absorption near a batch to beryllium desired.

He said the predetermination itself wasn’t bad, but the absorption of it, the incidents surrounding it, and the actions starring up to it near overmuch to beryllium desired.

“The incoming president indispensable prioritise rebuilding the commission’s reputation, restoring nationalist confidence, and addressing the question of post-election litigations,” Prof. Lecky stated.

On whether Professor Amupitan faces imaginable pitfalls successful taking implicit the commission, Lecky dismissed suggestions that the caller president could easy stumble.

“I don’t spot a banana peel successful the mode radical picture it. He’s not going to gaffe and fall. INEC has a comparatively robust bureaucracy that has been strengthened implicit the years. The directors and unit are good trained, exposed to champion practices globally, and experienced capable to enactment him.”

He commended the outgoing chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, for his efforts successful strengthening INEC’s administrative structure, saying that 1 of the legacies of the outgoing medication was the strengthening of the bureaucracy.

“Staff were trained, exposed to planetary standards, and are present rather resilient. I judge the caller president volition find a credible and competent squad that volition assistance him deed the crushed running,” he added.