SAN FRANCISCO, May 03, (THEWILL) – The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu says he is well abreast of what it takes to manage elections in a developing country like Nigeria, revealing that his predecessor, Prof. Attahiru Jega ran to him for advice whenever he was under pressure as INEC boss.
Speaking in an interview with Daily Trust, Yakubu said the announcement that he would be succeeding Jega came as a surprise, adding that the process of electing people into various positions of authority was getting better. He said the current nature of elections in Nigeria stemmed from the 2015 revolution, particularly with the introduction of technology.
His words, “Jega and I have been friends for some time. While I was serving as executive secretary at TETFUND, he (Jega) was chairman of INEC and whenever he came under pressure, he would rush to my office because we lived on the same street,” he said.
“He was a man of few words… In some cases, I would call to encourage and urge him to soldier on whatever the pressure was. But as you know, nothing in INEC happens quietly; it is always in the public domain.
“Now I have moved to INEC and he is not at TETFUND for me to rush to because he has gone back to the Bayero University, Kano. So it is a huge challenge and I understand the full import of serving as INEC chairman and managing elections in a developing country.”
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