The Senate has confirmed the appointment of six (6) new commissioners for the Independent National Electoral Commissioner (INEC) at its plenary on Thursday 17th November 2016. The new Commissioners are:
- Okechukwu Obinna Ibeanu – Anambra
- May I. Agbamuche-Mbu – Delta
- AVM Ahmed Tijani Mu’Azu – Gombe
- Mohammed Kudu Haruna – Niger
- Adekunle Ladipo Ogunmola – Oyo
- Abubakar Ahmed Nahuche – Zamfara
While presenting the Committee’s report detailing the screening of the nominees, Sen. Abubakar Kyari (APC:Borno), Chairman of the Committee, on mentioned that the nominees had been cleared by the police, Department of State Security (DSS) and the Code of Conduct Bureau. He also stressed that the nominees possessed the requisite academic and administrative experience that the office entailed and were outstanding professionals in their field. The Committee then recommended their confirmation.
It would be recalled that the Senate had referred President Munammadu Buhari’s request for the confirmation of the nominees as Commissioners of INEC to its Committee on INEC for further legislative input in October 2016. The confirmation of the six nominees will bring the total number of INEC Commissioners to eleven (11).