Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has called for a comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s electoral process, calling for the immediate sack of Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu and other officials at all levels.
Obasanjo made the call during his address at the prestigious Chinua Achebe Leadership Forum held at Yale University in the United States, where he presented a paper titled “Leadership Failure and State Capture in Nigeria.”
Obasanjo minced no words in describing the 2023 general election – which threw up Asiwaju Bola Tinubu as President – as a “travesty,” underscoring the imperative for reforming the electoral system to restore credibility and trust.
A key aspect of this reform, he argued, is the implementation of shorter tenures for INEC officials to prevent the undue influence of politics and corruption.
Moreover, Obasanjo advocated a rigorous vetting process to ensure that only impartial, non-partisan individuals with unimpeachable reputations are appointed to these critical positions.
The former president emphasized that INEC’s leadership must demonstrate unwavering independence, transparency, and incorruptibility.
Obasanjo also pointed to the commission’s failure to utilize cutting-edge technologies, specifically the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Election Result Viewing Portal (IReV), during the 2023 presidential election, despite promises to the contrary made by Chairman Yakubu.
The omission, Obasanjo alleged, led to widespread voting irregularities.
“The BVAS and IReV are two technological innovations that, prior to 2023, were celebrated for their potential to enhance the accuracy and transparency of our election results, eliminate the threat of election rigging, and boost public trust in electoral outcomes.
“These technologies were touted by the INEC chairman himself. In the end, these technologies did not fail. INEC willfully failed to use or implement them, which resulted in widespread voting irregularities. It was a case of inviting the fox into the henhouse,” Obasanjo stated.
