Obasanjo Calls For Sack of INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, Gives Reason

• Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has lambasted the INEC chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, for failing to use BVAS and IRev during the 2023 election
• Obasanjo said Yakubu and other INEC officials at the state and local government levels should be sacked
• The former Nigerian leader explained how the INEC chairperson should be appointed and the kind of persons to appoint

Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over 5 years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international events

United States - Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has called for the sack of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu.

Obasanjo said INEC officials at all levels should be fired as part of a reform of the electoral process in Nigeria.

He stated this while speaking in a pre-recorded speech played at the Chinua Achebe Leadership Forum, Yale University, in the United States.

According to Premium Times, Obasanjo described the 2023 general election as a “travesty”

The former Nigerian leader said the INEC chairperson must be absolutely above board and transparently independent and incorruptible.

“These technologies were touted by the INEC chairman himself. In the end, these technologies did not fail. INEC wilfully failed to use or implement them, which resulted in widespread voting irregularities. It was a case of inviting the fox into the henhouse.”

Obasanjo also called for shorter tenures for INEC officials and a more rigorous vetting process to prevent the appointment of partisan individuals.

He blasted INEC and its chairman for failing to use the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Election Result Viewing Portal (IReV) during the 2023 presidential election.

“Nigeria must ensure the appointment of new credible INEC leadership at the federal, state, local government, and municipal – city, town, and village – levels, with short tenures to prevent undesirable political influence and corruption, and to re-establish trust in the electoral system by its citizens,”

Obasanjo throws Jibe at President Tinubu

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that Obasanjo blamed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the state of the economy in the country

Obasanjo said Nigeria's situation is bad and the nation is sinking into chaos, insecurity, conflict, discord, division, and disunity amongst others.

He said Nigeria's failure is confirmed and glaring for every honest person to see under the "reign of Baba-go-slow and Emilokan"