FG makes list of four INEC commissioners that will succeed Jega

The Federal Government might have shortlisted four national
commissioners to take over from Prof. Attahiru Jega as the Chairman of
the Independent National Electoral Commission.
A source reliably learnt that Jega might be asked to hand over to one
of the commissioners in INEC and also proceed on a three-month
terminal leave.
During a presidential media chat on February 11, President Goodluck
Jonathan had reassured Nigerians that he had no plan to remove the
INEC chairman from office. The President's reassurance came at a time
when speculation was rife that government had perfected plans to
remove Jega. But some stakeholders who spoke after the interview had
dismissed the President's reassurances as needless, adding that the
laws of the land do not confer on the president powers to remove the
INEC chairman.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, the Supervising Minister of
Information, Mr. Edem Duke, had also said the President had no plan to
sack Jega.
"On the issue of the INEC chairman, I align myself with what the
President said that he has no plan to sack the INEC chairman.
"That is not to say that if it is time for the INEC chairman to
naturally exit his office, then the natural course of things will not
take place.
"It is like saying a civil servant has done 35 years or achieved the
age of 60; we now begin to say that he must not retire or he must
retire," Duke had said.
However, the minster drew parallels between Jega's conditions of
service and those of civil servants, reigniting speculation that the
Presidency might go ahead with the plan to remove Jega.
Earlier, there had been reports that Prof. Femi Mimiko, brother of the
Governor of Ondo State, Olusegun Mimiko, had been pencilled in for the
position but investigations by our correspondents showed that the
former Vice Chancellor of Adekunle Ajasin University, Ondo State was
no longer in contention.
Sources said the national commissioners that might take over from Jega
could come from a list made up of Dr. Mohammed Wali from Sokoto State,
Mrs. Amina Zakari from Jigawa State, Colonel Mohammed Kurmi Hammanga
(rtd.) from Adamawa State and Dr. Ishmael Igbani from Rivers State.
It was learnt that the person that would take over would act as
chairman till June 30 when the tenure of Jega would expire.
The Federal Government, it was learnt, had decided against appointing
an 'outsider' because preparations for the elections had reached an
advanced stage.
Investigations further showed that the FG had yet to decide on whether
to appoint the acting chairman from the North-West, where Jega hails
from or to take the post to another zone.
It was learnt that Wali and Zakari were shortlisted because they
hailed from the North-West.
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Igbani and Hammanga were included on the list because of the argument
among some top government officials that the INEC chairmanship should
not be subjected to the principle of zoning.
A top Federal Government official, who confided in a source on
Saturday, said, "None of the commissioners have been informed because
the government has not decided whether to retain the post in the
North-West or take it to another zone.
"The terminal leave letter that the All Progressives Congress senators
were talking about has not been written, but I cannot deny the fact
that government wants Jega to proceed on terminal leave.
"Anytime the letter is written and Jega gets it, it will contain the
name of the person he will hand over to."
It was learnt that the government officials, who advocated that one of
the INEC commissioners should be appointed, argued that with less than
three weeks to the elections, getting Jega's replacement from outside
of the commission could be complicated.
A top government official, who is privy to the discussions in
government circles in relating to Jega's fate, said, "Time is of the
essence. The truth is, if you bring someone from outside, he or she
will need time to understand the place and know what is happening. It
will be difficult for such a person to fully understand what is on the
ground.
"However, if we get someone who is already within the system, it will
be easier for the person to identify areas where errors were made and
correct them within the time left.
"There are also those who are making a case for a neutral person. This
set of people argue that after all, Jega himself was brought in from
outside and he did a good job of the 2011 elections."
Several calls and a text message to the Special Assistant (Media and
Communications) to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation,
Mr. Sam Nwaobasi, were not replied. Reports have said Jega's terminal
leave letter was written by the SGF.
Also, attempts to reach the Special Adviser to the President on
Political Matters Prof. Rufai Alkali and the Senior Special Assistant
to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe were unsuccessful.
Calls to their mobile phone indicated that it was unreachable. A
response to text messages sent to them were still being awaited as of
the time of filing this report.
Similarly, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and
Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, could not be reached as his telephone
lines were not connecting.
Explain why you don't want Jega sacked, PDP tells APC
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party has challenged the APC to
explain its link with the Chairman of the Independent National
Electoral Commission.
The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Olisa Metuh, in a statement
in Abuja on Saturday, said it was more than curious that the APC had
allegedly continued to fabricate stories and show undue interest in
Jega.
He said, "Undoubtedly, the frenzy, hysteria and spate with which the
APC has been inventing stories regarding Prof. Jega's stay in office
even when nothing suggests that such was on the table, raise a lot of
issues.
"We ask, is there any underlining issue or arrangement between the APC
and Prof. Jega which the opposition is hell-bent on protecting and
informing its anxiety and apprehension towards his stay in office?
"While it is noted that the APC is a party of one week, one lie, we in
the PDP look beneath the surface to the deeper issues propelling the
lies.
"We therefore challenge the APC to come clean and tell Nigerians the
real reason behind their false alarms and uncontrolled nervousness
regarding Prof. Jega ahead of the 2015 general elections.
"Finally, we wish to remind the leadership of INEC that Nigerians are
monitoring its activities and series of unfolding political events
ahead of the elections, and will not accept anything less than the
conduct of credible, free and fair general elections come March 28 and
April 11, 2015."
Reacting to these, the APC said President Goodluck Jonathan and the
PDP are not interested in the 2015 elections.
National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr. Lai Mohammed, said this
in response to an e-mail sent to him by a source, on Saturday.
Mohammed, who is in London on an official assignment said, "The plain
truth is President Jonathan and the PDP don't want elections at all.
"If Jega is removed, his successor will simply claim that as a new
helmsman, he should be given more time to prepare for the elections.
Therefore we don't want Jega removed because we don't want elections
postponed again. There is no other ulterior motive.
"Is it not strange that President Goodluck Jonathan and the PDP who
appointed Prof. Jega and praised his handling of all elections since
he came on board as transparent is now suddenly afraid of him and want
him out by all means."
Alleged terminal leave, illegal —Falana, Ubani
In their separate reactions, rights lawyers, including Mr. Femi Falana
(SAN), insisted that President Goodluck Jonathan lacked the power to
either sack Jega, or send him on a terminal leave. A former chairman
of the Nigerian Bar Association, Mr. Monday Ubani, and Mr. Malachy
Ugwummadu, also spoke to the source in separate interviews.
They cited provisions of Section 158 of the constitution as providing
that the INEC Chairman could only be sacked with the approval of
two-third majority of the members of the Senate.
Falana also explained that Section 155 of the constitution conferred
independence on the INEC chairman with immunity from any directive or
influence from any person or authority.
The senior advocate said, "At his last presidential chat, the
president gave the erroneous impression that he could hire and fire
the chairman of INEC. With profound respect, that is not correct.
"By virtue of Section 155 of the constitution, the INEC chairman has a
renewable five-year tenure. The appointment and removal has to be by
the resolution of no less than a two-third majority of the Senate.
"Before the resolution is passed, the President will need to address
the Senate and justify the reasons on the need to remove the INEC
chairman on account of his inability to discharge his duties.
"On the issue of sending Jega on terminal leave, the President has no
power to do that because once appointed, the INEC chairman is not
subject to the control or directive of any power or authority by
virtue of Section 158 of the constitution."
On his part, Ugwummadu, said beyond the constitutional provisions
conferring immunity against undue influence on the INEC chairman,
Nigerians were paying close attention to any plot to remove the INEC
boss.
He said, "The idea of sacking Prof. Attahiru Jega has been making the
rounds and should be watched carefully just as we have remained
circumspect regarding the further shift of the elections."
Ubani threatened to personally lead a "nationwide crusade" against the
President should there be any attempt by his administration to remove
Jega, having earlier publicly promised that he (President Jonathan)
had no such intention.
In the same vein, the President, Nigeria Voters Assembly, Mashood
Erubami, the Nigeria Voters Assembly condemned the alleged move to ask
Jega to go on terminal leave.
The group in a release signed by its President, Mr. Mashood Erubami,
strongly warned that the removal of Jega would show that the Federal
Government had a hidden agenda.
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