Former Labour Party vice-presidential candidate, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, has cautioned against the appointment of what he described as “an election-rigger” as the next chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Professor Mahmood Yakubu, who has held the position since 2015, will officially conclude his second five-year term on November 9, 2025. He was first appointed by former President Muhammadu Buhari and later reappointed in 2020.
Appearing on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Baba-Ahmed strongly criticized Yakubu’s stewardship, particularly his handling of the 2023 presidential election that ushered in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
According to him, the country cannot afford another controversial figure at the helm of the electoral body. “All I want is a credible person, not somebody who will clearly rig what the constitution provides: 25% in at least two-thirds of the states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, and go ahead to breach the constitution and put Nigeria into what Nigeria is today. Just one individual,” he said.
The former vice-presidential candidate stressed that Nigeria’s instability is rooted in flawed electoral processes. He linked issues of insecurity, corruption, and the disillusionment of the nation’s youth to electoral malpractice.
“Our leadership recruitment is the bane of our problems. Electoral fraud is the single most important fact to be addressed in our lives as a nation, even beyond insecurity. Insecurity is derived from electoral fraud. The Nigerian election gave birth to the kind of insecurity we have today. Corruption is aggravated by electoral fraud. The destruction of our youths, of the system, is aggravated by electoral fraud,” Baba-Ahmed declared.
He further argued that credible elections are the foundation of good governance and sustainable development, warning that appointing a compromised individual could deepen Nigeria’s democratic crisis.
okay.ng reports that the tenure of the current electoral boss is gradually winding down, heightening public debates on who should succeed him and what qualities should define Nigeria’s next chief election umpire.
