Former Lawmaker that represented Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, on Saturday weighed in on the ongoing controversy surrounding the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Joash Amupitan.
Sani in a post on X described the role of an INEC Chairman as one of the most difficult and thankless positions in Nigeria.
He noted that whoever occupies such position inevitably becomes a “punching bag” for political actors, regardless of their neutrality or performance.
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According to him, from the days of FEDECO to NEC and now INEC, the story has remained unchanged, with electoral umpires often facing criticism before, during, and after elections.
He referenced past electoral chiefs to support his position, including Maurice Iwu and Attahiru Jega, both of whom faced intense public backlash during their time in office.
He cited Attahiru Jega, who supervised the 2011 and 2015 general elections and was also majorly criticized after declaring Goodluck Jonathan the winner in 2011, particularly in northern Nigeria.
However, he was later praised after announcing Muhammadu Buhari as the winner of the 2015 presidential election.
“From Fedeco,NEC to INEC,the story is thesame.Though forgotten,Prof Maurice Iwu received more insults than any INEC chair in our history.When Jega declared GEJ the winner in 2011,he was declared an enemy and a Satan in the North:When he declared Buhari the winner in 2015,everyone in our region sang his praises.Prof Mahmud is now resting,Amupitan is now the punchbag.
“Our politics is that of you either win or you fight.That is what we are.Appoint an Angel as INEC Chair,he can only be safe in the hands of those who won,” he submitted.
