Buhari Swears In INEC Chair, Commissioners

Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari has officially sworn in the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu.

The swearing in ceremony took place on Monday at the council chamber in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.

During the event, President Buhari pledged to respect the independence of the electoral body – INEC, promising that he would not interfere with its functions.

He said that all Nigerians have a responsibility to safeguard the sanctity of democracy including transparent electoral process, free and fair elections.

Aside from INEC Chairman Professor Mahmud Yakubu, the five INEC Commissioners who were successfully screened by the Nigerian Senate were also sworn in.

They are; Antonla Taiye Okoosi Simbine for North-central, Baba Shettima Arfo for North-east, Mohammed Mustafa Lecky for South-south, Amina Zakari for North East and Soyebi Adedeji Solomon for South-west.

The President said that a situation where people hide under technicalities to deny the citizens their rights is unacceptable. He called on state governments to make their electoral bodies to work for the benefit of all.

The President also decried a situation where elections are cancelled without investigations into what led to such cancellations so as to prosecute offenders.