The Presidency has described as ‘falsehoods’ the allegations of nepotism credited to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) concerning the appointment of Mrs Amina Zakari as acting National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
President Muhammadu Buhari had, late Tuesday, appointed Zakari as Acting Chairman of INEC following the exit of Professor Attahiru Jega who finished his five-year tour of duty as Chairman of the Commission, same Tuesday; even as Prof Jega had formally handed over to a national commissioner, Ambassador Mohammed Ahmad Wali, barely six hours earlier.
At a press conference in Abuja, Wednesday afternoon, National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Olisah Metuh, promptly condemned the appointment of Zakari on the grounds that it did not follow due process.
“The PDP rejects the appointment of Zakari by President Buhari as it was ‘nepotic’ and did not follow due process,” Metuh claimed.
The PDP spokesman also used the forum to criticise the delay in cabinet formation by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), maintaining that it showed that the party “lacks direction and focus on how to govern the country”.
The party further alleged that the new acting boss of the electoral body “is too close to the Presidency,” stressing that it would insist that Zakari states her alleged closeness to the Presidency as well as to one of the governors of the APC from the North-West.
However, reacting swiftly to the claims and allegations by the PDP, late Wednesday, Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity), Mr. Femi Adeshina, in a statement, described the charges as ‘nothing but falsehoods contrived by Mr Metuh to unjustly denigrate a President popularly elected by Nigerians to undo the damage done to the nation by years of PDP rule.’
According to Adeshina, the appointment of Zakari followed due process, just as he stressed that the accusations against the APC and government ‘lacks factual foundation.’
“Other than boring reporters at his press conference with a rehash of baseless allegations of inaction against the President, Mr Metuh clearly had nothing new to say apart from his charge of nepotism and partisanship in the appointment of the Acting INEC Chairman, which also lacks any factual foundation.
“President Buhari certainly did not ‘overrule’ Prof. Attahiru Jega in appointing Mrs Amina Zakari as the Acting INEC Chairman, as Mr Metuh alleged. Prof. Jega’s purported handing over to another Commissioner cannot be construed as an ‘appointment’ because only the President has the constitutional authority, which he exercised to appoint Mrs Zakari as acting Chairman of INEC.
“Contrary to Mr Metuh’s allegations, President Buhari’s appointment of Mrs Zakari as Acting INEC Chairman was based entirely on merit, her vast experience in the internal operations of INEC and the President’s commitment to affirmative action in support of gender equality, because, apart from being fully qualified for the position, Mrs Zakari was the only woman among the six Commissioners considered.
“Due Process was certainly followed in Mrs Zakari’s appointment. Mr Metuh’s spurious claims of her appointment having been influenced by ‘personal relationship with the Presidency’ and a Governor in the North-West ‘to pave the way for the APC’ at election tribunals should be disregarded by the public.
“The allegations are nothing but falsehoods contrived by Mr Metuh to unjustly denigrate a President popularly elected by Nigerians to undo the damage done to the nation by years of PDP rule,” Adeshina concluded.
