Former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Attahiru Jega, has denied making a statement describing the 2023 elections as compromised. This denial comes in response to reports claiming that he made such a comment during a two-day retreat organized by the Senate in Akwa Ibom State.
The alleged statement was attributed to Jega in a paper he presented titled, “Electoral Reform and Democratic Consolidation in Nigeria: Review of 2022 Electoral Act (areas for further legislative actions).” In the paper, he was quoted as saying, “We have seen in 2023 elections, the damaging effect of how people in the corridors of power get their client/partisan nominees appointed, without being thoroughly screened, and then they are influenced to compromise the integrity of elections.”
Jega’s Senior Research Assistant, Hamman-Obels, issued a statement refuting the accuracy of the reports. In the statement, Hamman-Obels clarified that the report was not an accurate reflection of Jega’s position and that the former INEC Chairman categorically denies making the statement in question. The statement emphasized that nowhere in Jega’s presentation did he make such a comment about the compromised state of the 2023 elections.