Who be May Agbamuche-Mbu and wetin dey ahead of her as acting chairman of Inec?
Wia dis foto come from, INEC/X
Professor Mahmood Yakubu step down as di Chairman of di Independent National Electoral Commission (Inec).
E don hand over give May Agbamuche-Mbu, one of di most senior National Commissioner for di commission, as acting National Chairman of di electoral bodi.
Professor Yakubu make di announcement on Tuesday, 7 September, during meeting wit Resident Electoral Commissioners for INEC headquarters, Abuja, di kontri capital.
According to Nigeria Constitution, na di President get power to nominate and appoint new Inec Chairman and National Commissioners, afta e don consult di Council of State.
For Nigeria, wen Inec Chairman wan comot and new one don dey come, di handover dey always follow official and formal process, no be personal or political. E dey happun like dis:
- Presidential appointment of New Chairman: Di President go nominate new Inec Chairman as Constitution tok for Section 154(1). Di Senate go still confirm am bifor e go fit enter office.
- End of tenure or resignation of old Chairman: Di outgoing Chairman fit finish im five-year tenure (wey dem fit renew once) or e fit resign. Sometimes, e dey remain for office till di new Chairman swear in.
- Official handover ceremony for INEC Headquarters: Once new Chairman don swear in, dem go do small official handover for Inec office, Abuja. Di old Chairman go give handover notes - wey get details about projects, policy, finance and election plans. New Chairman go begin work officially and address staff and di public.
- Notification to staff and public: Inec go release press statement to confirm di change. Di old Chairman go tank staff and stakeholders, while di new one go tok im plans and vision for di Commission.
Who be May Agbamuche-Mbu, di new acting Inec Chairman?
Agbamuche-Mbu na lawyer wey get over 30 years experience for both public and private sector.
She come from Delta State but na for Kano dem born am and attend St. Louis Secondary School.
She graduate from University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) wit LLB Law for 1984 and she don call to Bar since 1985.
Later, she qualify as Solicitor of di Supreme Court of England and Wales.
She also hold LLM for Commercial and Corporate Law from Queen Mary and Westfield College, London, plus two postgraduate degrees for International Dispute Resolution and International Business Law.
She be expert for Alternative Dispute Resolution and she don serve as Secretary for di Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK) Nigeria branch.
Between 2010 - 2011, she be di sole solicitor for Presidential Projects Assessment Committee (PPAC) and later for 2016, she join Ministerial Committee wey prepare Road Map for di Solid Minerals Sector.
Before she become INEC National Commissioner, she be Managing Partner for Norfolk Partners and Editor of THISDAY LAWYER, where she publish 120 Legal Eagle columns.
Wetin dey ahead for Agbamuche-Mbu?
Wia dis foto come from, INEC/X
Di first big task wey go meet Agbamuche-Mbu na Anambra Governorship Election wey go happun for 8 November 2025.
Anambra State na one of di states wey no dey always join general election same time wit di national one.
Gubernatorial elections for Nigeria dey always hot and sometimes dey come wit serious wahala between candidates.
Inec don already release di final list of candidates for di 2025 Anambra governorship election and don announce di official campaign start date.
According to Sam Olumekun, National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education Committee, di list come afta dem finish candidate substitution and verify di personal details wey political parties submit.
Inec tok say 16 political parties meet di submission deadline of May 12, 2025, and dem go participate for di November 8 election.
Among dem, African Action Congress (AAC) and National Rescue Movement (NRM) nominate female candidates, while six parties, Accord, APC, APP, Boot Party, Labour Party and ZLP get female running mates.
However, according to INEC no party nominate any candidate wit disability.
Tins wey pipo go remember Mahmood Yakubu tenure as INEC Chairman
Mahmood Yakubu serve as Inec oga from 2015 till 2025 and im time bring many firsts, controversies and achievements.
Bifor e become Inec Chairman, e be Executive Secretary of Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) afta Professor Attahiru Jega comot.
Dis na some big tins wey pipo go remember during im time as Chairman:
- Longest-Serving INEC Chairman: Yakubu be di first Inec boss wey serve two full terms (2015 - 2025).
- Introduction of BVAS and IReV: Na im introduce BVAS and INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) wey change how voters and results dey verified.
- Expansion of Voter Register: Under am, voter register pass 93 million names, di biggest for Africa.
- Continuous Voter Registration (CVR): E make voter registration more flexible and kontinu, even outside election period.
- Conduct of two general elections: E handle 2019 and 2023 general elections across 176,000 polling units.
- Better election logistics: E improve early deployment of materials and coordination wit security agencies.
- Partnership wit Stakeholders: E build strong relationship wit political parties, civil society and international observers.
- Digital transformation: E push INEC into digital operations from nomination to result transmission.
