The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room is concerned about the nomination of Ms. Lauretta Onochie, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Social Media as National Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) representing the South-South.
Ms. Onochie is a known partisan supporter of President Muhammadu Buhari and his ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Item F, paragraph 14 of the third schedule of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended) forbids a partisan politician as a member of INEC – a body charged under the Constitution to unbiasedly conduct of free and fair elections.
Her nomination amounts to a major attempt at undermining efforts to build credibility for an improved electoral process in the country.
Situation Room calls on President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately withdraw her nomination. Should the President fail to withdraw this nomination, the Senate is hereby called upon to disregard her nomination without any consideration whatsoever. Situation Room is also calling on the Nigerian Senate to investigate all of the other nominations by the President, especially as there are concerns that some of these nominations may have been by self-serving interests.
It is important for Nigeria that the composition of INEC is transparently non-partisan and independent of partisan political manipulation.
SIGNED:
Clement Nwankwo
Convener
For: Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room
