Breaking: Buhari appoints Professor Mahmood Yakubu as new INEC chairman

Prof Mahmood Yakubu has been nominated by President Muhammadu Buhari as the new chairman of the Independent National ElectoraL Commission (INEC).

According to Channels Television, the appointment of Professor Yakubu was confirmed at the Council of State meeting on Wednesday.


INEC is established under section 153 of the 1999 Nigerian constitution and the appointment of the chairman and members is constitutionally provided for under Section 154(1) and (2) of the constitution.
The constitution prescribes that the president in exercising his power to appoint an INEC chairman “shall consult the Council of State”, and such appointment again, “shall be subject to confirmation by the Senate.”
Professor Yakubu takes over from Mrs Amina Zakari who has been acting as chairman of the electoral commission since the exit of former chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega.
Professor Yakubu’s nomination as INEC chairman would also have to be confirmed by a two-third majority of the Senate, the upper chambers of the National Assembly.
Yakubu is described as “a professor of political history and international studies, was Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund. He is an expert in guerrilla warfare, terrorism and counter-terrorism.”
Many had believed that President Buhari would appoint Mrs Amina Zakari as the substantive INEC chairman, a position she has held in acting capacity since June 2015 when Professor Jega completed his tenure. Zakari would have become the first woman to be appointed a substantive chairman of Nigeria’s topmost election body.