The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has taken disciplinary action against one of its Resident Electoral Commissioners, Barr Hudu Yunusa Ari, after he made a controversial announcement during the gubernatorial election in Adamawa State on Sunday morning.
Barr Ari declared Aisha ‘Binani’ Dahiru, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the winner of the polls, which was not within his constitutional authority.
This announcement caused great tension within the state and sparked national debate, with observers calling what transpired in Adamawa State a disgrace.
INEC has directed Barr Ari to stay away from all activities of the electoral umpire and the election in Adamawa State.
The commission declared the announcement of Binani as the “winner” of the Adamawa governor election “null and void,” stating that the pronouncement is of no effect.
Barr Ari’s actions were deemed to be an “usurpation” of the Returning Officer’s office, and he committed a second error by announcing the results of an election whose collation process had not been concluded.
According to INEC, the Returning Officer is the only person who can declare election results, and the commission has zero tolerance for any act that undermines the integrity of the electoral process.
In a statement issued by Festus Okoye, INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education Committee, the commission warned that it would not hesitate to take action against any of its officials who undermine the integrity of the electoral process.
The statement also reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to ensuring free, fair, and credible elections in the country, and urged all stakeholders to cooperate with INEC to achieve this goal.
