The Middle Belt Forum has called for the resignation of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, before the governorship election scheduled for this weekend.
The call, the forum claimed, followed the alleged subversion of the wishes of the people in the recent general elections and refusal of the commission to transmit the results of the February 25 election from each polling unit through the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System to INEC Election Result Viewing Portal.
The organisation said the basis of the support of the people of the Middle Belt for the presidential candidate of Labour Party, Peter Obi, in the last general elections, was in line with its sense of justice, equity and fair play.
The President of MBF, Dr. Pogu Bitrus, said this in a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday.
Pogu said, “We call on the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu to toe the honourable path by resigning his position before the next election. His frittering away of tens of billions of Naira on a technology that he did not intend to use makes him unfit to continue to maintain his position.”
The forum disclosed in the event Yakubu failed to tender his resignation after its press statement, the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), should fire him.
As political parties and candidates head to the election petition tribunal, the forum strongly urges the Judges to remain on the side of justice and ensure the wheel of justice is not compromised.
It added, “On the basis of fairness and inclusivity, it was imperative for the South East to produce the next President of Nigeria from Southern Nigeria.”
The forum noted that the results of the February 25 general elections from the Middle Belt enclaves in the 14 states and the FCT demonstrate the commitment of the region to stand as a bulwark against anti-democratic and feudal forces determined to foist a culture of impunity, divisiveness and inequity on our Nation.
Pogu, on behalf of the forum, congratulates Nigerians, especially Middle Belt residents, for coming out en masse to exercise their civic duties.
However, it said INEC was not prepared to conduct free and credible elections.
“Despite the commitment of Nigerians, particularly youths, to register and vote for a President of their choice, INEC, in collaboration with anti-democratic forces, brazenly subverted the will of the people. This subversion was orchestrated by the electoral commission in 2022.”
