*Yakubu
Swears In 14 New RECs
Acting
President Yemi Osinbajo has said that only way to ensure genuine peace and
stability in the West African sub-region is to allow its people choose their
leaders and
any other method would be an invitation to chaos.
According to
a statement issued by Mr. Rotimi Lawrence Oyekanmi, Chief Press Secretary to
Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood
Yakubu, Osinbajo said this yesterday when he received members of the ECOWAS
Network of Electoral Commissions (ECONEC) Steering Committee, led by Mahmood,
who is its President, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He described
the ECONEC initiative as a beautiful idea that would provide an opportunity for
member countries to interact and synergise, just as he pledged Nigeria’s
continued support for the sustenance of democracy in the sub-region to ensure
peace, stability and economic development.
Speaking
earlier, Yakubu said all ECOWAS member countries were currently under
democratic rule, a situation he described as a laudable development.
He said
ECONEC seeks to assist member states in areas of need to ensure the sustenance
of democracy in the region, adding that it was particularly important for all
members to help Sierra Leone, which, according to him, emerged from a major
crisis not too long ago.
Yakubu told
Osinbajo that Cameroun recently requested for help from INEC, as a result of
which “we are dispatching our experts to assist them.”
The INEC
boss also said it would be better to deploy ECONEC to ensure peace in West
Africa than to deploy ECOMOG (The Economic Community of West African States
Monitoring Group), a military unit established by ECOWAS members in 1990 to
intervene in the Liberian civil war.
The ECONEC
Steering Committee is made up of Nigeria, Republic of Benin, Guinea Bissau,
Burkina Faso and Cape Verde.
Meanwhile,
Yakubu yesterday swore in 14 new Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs), with
a charge to shun all overtures of corruption from politicians.
At the
ceremony at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja, Yakubu noted that the
occasion marks yet another important milestone in the consideration of credible
election in the country.
Two of the
RECs were reappointed for a second and final term, while 12 are fresh
appointments.
Yakubu said
managing elections is no ordinary responsibility, noting that on the
commission’s shoulders lies a large share of responsibility of conducting
transparent elections leading to credible and ultimately acceptable outcome.
The last
general election, he said, has been rightly acclaimed all over the world as a
turning point in the country’s democratic evolution, a pride to INEC and
Nigeria.
“Your
appointment is coming barely 19 months to the next general election. Our
commitment to Nigerians is to make the 2019 election better than the previous
elections, and this is achievable.
“The eyes of
the nation are on INEC. We must demonstrate that 2015 was not a fluke, but a
systematic progression in the maturity of our democracy,” he said.
He
maintained: “Good elections begin from our credibility as election managers. In
turn, our credibility depends on the openers and transparency of our process
borne out of courage to strictly adhere to the provision of the Constitution,
the Electoral Act and our Regulations and Guidelines.
“Outcome of
elections must be determined solely by the votes that eligible citizens cast at
the polls and nothing else.
“You will be
responsible for managing personnel, processes and resources in your state of
origin. You will also interact with partisan actors. Some of them would like to
forge an unsavory relationship with you and your staff.
“You must
resist such overtures. Always bear in mind that INEC is not a political party.
INEC has no candidate in any election. You must demonstrate transparency,
impartiality, courage and balanced interaction with all stakeholders for all
stakeholders.
“As an
umpire, our responsibility is to guarantee a level playing field for all
actors, inclusiveness for all citizens, irrespective of gender or disability
and above all respect and protection of the choice made by voters as the sole
determinant of elective representation at all levels,” he said.
He charged
the RECs to be conversant with existing electoral legal framework and the
commission’s plan and procedures and to be conversant with the Commission’s
Code of Conduct, saying where in doubt, they should seek guidance or
clarification from the commission, either by directly liaising with the
headquarters or through the quarterly consultative meetings between the
headquarters and the states.
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