•President honours Ex Commission’s head with CON

•Former THISDAY General Counsel/Law Editor becomes acting Chairman

Deji Elumoye in Abuja

President Bola Tinubu is currently the focus of public attention following the retirement of Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, as everyone is waiting to see who the president would nominate as the next electoral umpire.

Although there had been speculations that Tinubu is actively considering Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan, an indigene of Kogi State, how he navigates his eventual choice is yet to be seen amid the looming 2027 general election.

Nonetheless, the president accepted the departure of Yakubu as INEC chairman following the expiration of his second term in office.

Former THISDAY General Counsel and Law Editor, May Agbamuche-Mbu, known for her integrity stepped in as Acting Chairman of INEC, being the most senior National Commissioner.

Yakubu was first appointed in November 2015 as the 14th chairman of the commission for an initial term of five years. The appointment, which was renewed in 2020, had now expired.

Tinubu, in a release by his Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, thanked Yakubu for his services to the country. He praised Yakubu’s effort to sustain Nigeria’s democracy, particularly through the organisation of free and fair elections throughout his two-term tenure.

In recognition of Yakubu’s dedicated service to the country, Tinubu bestowed on him the honour of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON).

Tinubu also directed that Yakubu should hand over to the most senior national commissioner, Agbamuche-Mbu,  would direct the affairs of the commission until the appointment of a substantive chairman.

In a letter dated October 3, 2025, Yakubu thanked the president for the opportunity to serve the country as chairman of INEC since 2015.

Thus, after weeks of speculation, Yakubu officially stepped down as INEC chairman.

In obedience to the directives of the president, Yakubu handed over to Agbamuche-Mbu, who had stepped in, in acting capacity, pending the appointment of a chairman.

The announcement was made yesterday during a meeting with Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) at the INEC headquarters in Abuja.

THISDAY had reported that Tinubu’s long search for a new INEC chairman might be drawing to an following the president’s strong consideration of Amupitan to replace Yakubu.

Amupitan, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration), University of Jos, and Professor of Law with specialisation and experience in Law of Evidence, Corporate Governance, Corporate Law and Privatisation Law, might, thus, be announced as the new INEC chairman any moment from now.

Speaking yesterday, Yakubu said over the years, the commission had achieved a lot in responding to challenges and monitoring, while also introducing many innovations.

He stated that the electoral body had consolidated the biometric register of voters and replaced many of the manual processes with digital platforms and applications.

Yakubu said that included the nomination of candidates, submission of polling and collation agents by political parties, accreditation of national and international observers and media representatives for elections, voter accreditation, and result management.

Yakubu stressed that with the support of development partners, the commission had introduced various technologies to improve diverse aspects of election management. He said this included the easy location of election facilities, management of collation and returning officers, virtual training of electoral staff, management of political parties’ finances and audits, as well as the overall monitoring of elections using the Election Monitoring and Support Centre (EMSC).

He stated that the commission had made tremendous progress, but a lot more needed to be done.

Yakubu stated, “Accordingly, unknowing the enormity of the challenges ahead, having been privileged to serve the Commission for 10 years, with only a few more weeks to serve, I have taken a decision and conveyed the same as provided by Section 306, Subsections 1 and 2 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended.

“In the interim, I am handing over to one of the most senior national commissioners by date of appointment.”

Yakubu added, “Following consultation with other national commissioners, Ms. May Agbamuche-Mbu will serve in acting capacity pending the appointment of a substantive chairman of the Commission.

“I hope that this will afford the appointing authorities adequate time to appoint a new chairman. It will also enable the new chairman to quickly settle down to the task of conducting elections and electoral activities in Africa’s most demographically and logistically complex environment.”

Yakubu stated that since 2015, he had worked with 24 national commissioners and 67 resident electoral commissioners, as well as the regular staff of the commission.

According to him, “Together, we innovated and managed the Commission’s enormous responsibilities, sometimes on the verge of breaking down.

“I also enjoy tremendous support and goodwill from members of the National Assembly, particularly successive chairmen and members of the committees on electoral matters.”

The former chairman stated that there were a number of forthcoming elections, saying the preparations for some of them are either at advanced or concluding stages.

Yakubu stressed that the Anambra State governorship election would hold next month, followed by the Area Council election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in February 2026, the Ekiti State governorship election in June 2026, and the Osun State governorship election in August 2026.

He stated, “In addition to these off-cycle elections, we have already commenced preparations for some of the major activities for the 2027 general election, while awaiting the enactment of a new electoral act.

“The bill is currently before the National Assembly. It is expected that electoral reforms contained in the new act will necessitate further review of our regulations and guidelines, as well as the manuals for elections.”

Yakubu emphasised that beyond those reviews, the commission needed to further clean up the voters’ register, review the locations of some of the polling units, and allotment of voters to them.

He said the management of party primaries was another major area of activity, stressing that in the 2023 general election, the commission processed the nomination of over 20,000 candidates.

“Above all, I thank Nigerians for their comments as well as criticisms which encouraged rather than discouraged us to persevere,” he said.

Yakubu added, “Today, we are presenting two books to the public. The first, entitled Election Management in Nigeria 2015-2025, is a compendium of all activities carried out in the last 10 years under my watch.

“The second book, entitled Innovations in Electoral Technology 2015-2025, more specifically dwells on the new technologies introduced by the Commission in the last one decade.

“It is now my pleasure to sign my official handing over notes and present the same to Mrs. May Agbamuche-Mbu to do the same and thereafter, I will hand over the handing over notes and from that point, I will take my exit.”

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