2023 polls: LP demands immediate dismissal, prosecution of INEC chairman

The Director General of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, Akin Osuntokun, has urged for the immediate removal and prosecution of Prof Mahmood Yakubu, the National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), for his involvement in the 2023 presidential elections.

Osuntokun additionally called for a thorough financial investigation to be conducted on all the funds and contributions received by INEC prior to, during, and after the elections.

These demands were put forth by the campaign director during an international press conference held at the campaign headquarters of the Labour Party in Abuja on Thursday.

“We demand unequivocally, the immediate dismissal from Ofiice and prosecution of Prof Mahmud Yakubu and the commencement of forensic financial investigation into the expenditure of budgeted disbursements and donors’ funds received by INEC.

“This is in addition to the N300 billion appropriated from the national purse as well as other funds and materials received from International donor Agencies,” he said.

This development arises just five months after the February 25th election, during which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the winner.

Tinubu received a total of 8,794,726 votes, surpassing the candidates from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, who garnered 6,984,520 votes, and the Labour Party (LP) candidate, Peter Obi, who received 6,101,533 votes.

However, both Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi rejected the election results, holding separate press conferences where they claimed that the election was marred by violence and extensive rigging.

Consequently, both candidates proceeded to the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal seeking legal redress.

Akin Osuntokun, in response to the court case, stated during the press conference on Thursday that all the evidence presented by the PDP and LP confirmed their initial suspicion that the election was tainted by irregularities.

Osuntokun called for disciplinary actions to be taken against Festus Okoye, the INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, as well as other senior administrative and field staff members, alleging their complicity.

Furthermore, he cautioned against any form of intimidation directed at the European Union and other election observers in relation to their reports on the election.

“The Labour Party and the Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Organisation condemn vehemently, the negative and jaundiced responses on the EU Report and other Election Observers’ reports, by the spokesperson of APC administration and other ill-informed persons, which are totally in discord, with the mood of the nation, at this time, and which also, present an embarrassing contrast, to their selective celebration of the 2019 Election reports, from these same Observer groups.

“It is now only logical, bolstered by the final Observer Group reports, that the International Community take immediate and appropriate punitive action against Prof Mahmud Yakubu, Barrister Festus Okoye, and other top administrative and field staff of INEC, directly complicit, in the desecration of these elections.

“We advise those who have deployed hired ‘protesters’ to the offices of the EU, in respect of their election report, to desist from any further wastage of public funds, as the objective of intimidation is without basis, and has failed, from the beginning – because indeed, the irregularities in the election, were so excessively glaring, with bitter personal and reported experiences, by the overwhelming majority of Nigerians.

“We would like to point Nigerians, to the fact, that the EU Observer group report, is in tandem with the reports of other international and domestic observers, duly accredited by INEC, and also in tandem, with public opinion and the experience of the majority of Nigerian citizens, who participated in, or observed the 2023 general elections.

“At this juncture, there is no doubt that Nigerians and the International Community expect the judiciary, to critically examine the evidence, the law, and the processes of these flawed elections, in arriving at a legally correct, and overwhelmingly acknowledgeable verdict.”