…Threathens that PDP will hold protest until the new REC is re-deployed
Jigawa State Chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has rejected Muhammad Bashir, the new Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) deployed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to the state.
The State PDP presidential and Governorship campaign council youth leader, Umar Danjani who disclosed the party’s position on the development called on the Commission to redeploy him to another state.
He further informed that, the PDP may embark on a peaceful protest in all the 27 local government areas of the state against the deployment of the new REC until INEC meet their demand.
To butres their allegations against the new REC, PDP presented an interview he had with the Sun newspaper in May 2019, where he allegedly claimed to be an APC and he “fought Sokoto governor, Aminu Tambuwal, out of the party”.
Danjani added that, Bashir was a former APC governorship aspirant in Sokoto and a staunch supporter of President Muhammadu Buhari.
The PDP youths leader stated that, appointment of the new REC who is openly partisan and affiliated to a political party violates “Section 14 (2a) of the third schedule to the 1999 Nigerian Constitution” which provides that “a member of the Independent National Electoral Commission shall be non-partisan and a person of unquestionable integrity.”
However, INEC’s spokesperson, Festus, Okoye, was reported to have exonerated the Commission on appointment of Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs).
He informed that, the Commission does not play any role in the appointment of RECs adding that, their appointment according to “Section 14 (3) of the Third Schedule to the Constitution” it was the President that appoints Resident Electoral Commissioners and confirmed by the Senate.
According to him, the President has made his appointments which have been confirmed by the Senate and were sworn in by the Chairman of the Commission, Professor Mahmoud Yakubu and deployed to various states.
