Former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, said the nomination of the immediate former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu as ambassador-designate by President Bola Tinubu, is morally indefensible.
Atiku in a statement on Thursday said such nomination sends the wrong message to the current leadership of the commission “that partisan, compromised, or poorly executed elections may ultimately be rewarded.”
According to him, such a nomination raises serious concerns, adding that it may appear “a quid pro quo rather than a recognition of merit.”
Atiku added that it presents terrible optics for an administration that is already struggling with credibility.
“Let me state without ambiguity: under no circumstance would I, as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, nominate the immediate past INEC Chairman for an ambassadorial position,” he assured.
The former vice president argued that it is morally indefensible for an umpire at the centre of one of the most disputed elections in the nation’s history to become a beneficiary of its outcome.
“This is not the path to strengthening our democracy or restoring public trust in our institutions,” he said.
