Zakari To Continue As INEC Chair Despite Expiration Of Tenure As National Commissioiner

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Although her tenure as a National Commissioner at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has ended, Mrs. Amina Zakari will not leave the job because of her recent appointment as the acting chairman of the electoral commission, INEC has said.

Zakari is one of the National commissioners, whose tenure effectively ended on Tuesday.

INEC justified her continued stay in office on Tuesday, explaining that the letter appointing her as an acting chairman of the commission by President Muhammadu Buhari last month supersedes her exit date as a national commissioner in the agency.

According to INEC’s Deputy Director of Publicity, Nick Dazang who spoke exclusively to Vanguard, there is no confusion over the position of Zakari in INEC having been named the acting chairman of the commission by the President.

Dazang said that Zakari will remain at the helm of affairs at INEC pending the appointment of a substantive chairman by the Federal Government.

“There should be no controversy over the appointment of the Acting Chairman by the President because in Section 153 to 159 of the Nigerian Constitution, the President has the power to appoint the INEC Chairman subject to ratification by the Senate.

“There is a letter by the Head of Service appointing Zakari as the Acting Chairman pending the appointment of a substantive chairman and this is already in the public domain,” Dazang said.