Newly sworn-in Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, on Monday promised to be courageous in taking decisions at the commission.
He however noted that he would be guided by the Electoral Act and the Constitution in the discharge of his duties.
Yakubu, who made the pledge at INEC headquarters, Abuja, on Monday when he assumed office as the new chairman of the commission, doubted the veracity of people’s perception of the INEC job as very difficult.
According to him, “I am not sure that it is really difficult, simply because the constitution is very clear.
“The roles and responsibilities of INEC are very clearly spelt out and the provisions of the electoral act are also very clear.
“Our responsibility is to ensure that in whatever we do, we are guided by the letter and spirit of the constitution. And these we are going to do with courage.
“Whatever we need to do, we will ensure that this is done courageously and according to the law.”
The new INEC helmsman, who promised to be just to all and never to fail the expectations of Nigerians in his new roles, said he loves hard tasks, affirming that, “One of my bosses used to say that the public office has tenure, a minimum of one day and a maximum of the tenure.
“In the case of the INEC, it is a minimum of a one day and a maximum of five years. In between is the privilege to serve. We will never ever fail this nation.
“We will be courageous in what we do, and we will be courageous and just to all that we are supposed to serve.”
Yakubu also pledged to build on the successes that were recorded by previous administrations, especially in the conduct of the 2015 general elections.
He said, “We have come a long way. We have hard commendations both locally and internationally, in the conduct of the 2015 general elections.
“As I said at the Senate screening, our responsibility as a new commission is actually to consolidate and add value.
“Nations don’t make progress by always starting afresh; nations make progress because there is a building block on which we now build more.”
The INEC Chairman also pledged to go through the note handed over to him, including both local and international observers’ reports for proper implementation.
No comments:
Post a Comment