2023 polls: INEC has nothing to hide — Yakubu

The National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has said, contrary to what some people may think, the commission has nothing to hide regarding the conduct of the 2023 general elections.

Speaking yesterday during the INEC’s review of the 2023 general elections with the Media in Lagos, Yakubu insisted that many positive things came out of the polls.

He said: “There is a long-standing partnership between the commission and the media. The media remains one of our critical stakeholders. The media covers both our elections and our electoral activities. We knew that you were citizens first and foremost before you answered your professional call. We considered your opinion important to the electoral process.

“This is an opportunity for the media executives in the various organizations to tell us what they have seen and how we can continue to improve the electoral process in the future.

“The commission has nothing to hide, and it is through this type of interaction that we continuously improve the process for future elections.

“There are many positives coming from the general elections, and at the same time, we admit that there were many challenges in the last election.

On her part, INEC’s Monitoring Planning and Strategy Committee Chair, Professor Rhoda Gumus, while commending the media on their role in stabilizing the electoral process, noted that “the media play a vital role in the electoral process in information dissemination; without the media, guiding the credibility of the electoral process would be a difficult task.

It is the commission’s policy to organize post-election reviews after successful elections, and the 2023 general election cannot be an exception. The purpose of the meeting is to undertake a comprehensive review of the issues, challenges, and evaluation of the 2023 general election and to learn critical lessons. The review meeting is designed to get feedback from the media and also highlight how the media and INEC can work together to ensure the nation’s stability during and after elections.”