The governorship candidate of Labour Party in Kwara State, Issa Aremu and a chieftain of Social Democratic Party (SDP), Rufai Alkali jointly thinks that Nigerians need not doubt the credibility behind the appointment of Amina Zakari as chair of its collation centre committee.
Aremu in an interview on Channels Television program, Politics Today said the independence and objectivity of Zakari should be doubted because she is a senior member of the commission and had served as acting Chairperson.
“I have no doubt in terms of the appointments that have been made, they have all served INEC before. Mrs Zakari used to be acting Chairperson of INEC so, I don’t think we can doubt her level of independence and objectivity.
“My only reservation is that such appointment should have been made much earlier,” he said.
The SDP chieftain, Alkali, in his opinion said if the appointment was made earlier, it would not have generated controversy. He also noted that the most important thing is the electorates and not the appointment of Zakari.
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“During election time, everybody is tested. Our institutions are tested, our laws are tested, individuals are tested. Every decision and action by any agency or individual is always seen in different light. I agree with Mr Aremu that if this decision was made earlier, it will not provoke this kind of apprehension.
“I also agree with him totally that what matters is the voters that will decide about the election,” Alkali said.
Speaking concerning Zakari’s relationship with President Muhammadu Buhari, Aremu said the most important thing is Zakari’s pedigree and not who she is related to.
“At the end of the day, all of us will be related one way or the other. What is important is her pedigree in terms of objectivity and independence. She once acted as chairperson of INEC approved by the president. To that extent, I think we should be able to have trust.
“I think we should focus on issues because it is the ordinary man and woman who are qualified to vote that will determine this process and they will only vote based on issues that we will put on the table. We should have an eye on the ball, not on the net,” he said.
Meanwhile, INEC in response has said that the controversy surrounding the appointment of Amina Zakari as chair of its collation centre committee is a needless one.
Speaking on Zakari’s new role while featuring as a guest on Channel Television’s Sunrise Daily, Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi said the position has nothing to do with announcing the votes at the end of collation.
Osaze-Uzzi, the director of voter education and publicity at INEC, said the text of the INEC chairman did talk about the role of the committee, stressing that it is “basically an administrative committee.”
