The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has warned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu against the alleged plot to appoint a partisan loyalist as the new chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In a statement released on Wednesday by the National Coordinator of the body, Emmanuel Onwubiko, HURIWA cautioned that such a move would threaten the fragile gains made in Nigeria’s electoral system and compromise the 2027 general elections.
“It would be disastrous for Nigeria’s democracy if President Tinubu appoints a stooge whose primary assignment is to manipulate the electoral process in favour of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
“Such a move would not only destroy the institutional gains made under (Mahmood) Yakubu’s stewardship but also plunge the nation into renewed political instability, electoral distrust, and international disrepute,” the statement read.
HURIWA called on civil society organisations, the media, professional bodies, and international partners to remain vigilant and insist on a transparent and merit-based selection process for the new INEC chairman.
The group emphasised that the next appointment must reflect competence, credibility, and non-partisanship, rather than political loyalty.
The association further urged the National Assembly to strengthen legal and institutional frameworks that safeguard INEC’s independence, including provisions that prevent the executive from unilaterally imposing leadership on the commission.
It also recommended that future electoral reforms prioritise redundancy measures, better training for ad hoc staff, and independent audits of result transmission systems to enhance transparency and public confidence.
“INEC’s reforms under Mahmood Yakubu are fragile gains that must not be squandered,” HURIWA cautioned. “If the next leadership is chosen to serve political interests rather than national integrity, Nigeria’s electoral democracy will regress sharply. The people must resist any attempt to turn INEC into a partisan tool.”
Meanwhile, the group commended the immediate past Chairman of the INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, for his decade-long tenure, which it described as transformative and institutionally progressive.
It said that under Professor Yakubu’s leadership, INEC underwent significant modernisation that strengthened its operational integrity and public transparency.
The association cited the introduction of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing portal (IReV) as two landmark innovations that redefined Nigeria’s electoral process by reducing human interference, curbing manipulation, and allowing citizens to independently verify results from polling units across the country.
Leave a Comment