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Buhari’s nomination of Lauretta Onochie into INEC heats up #SARSMUSTEND
BY NICHOLAS ABE
President Muhammadu Buhari’s request for the Senate to confirm his Special Assistant on Social Media, Mrs. Lauretta Onochie, from Delta, as a National Electoral Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has further inflamed the #SARSMUSTEND protests across the federation.
Senate President Ahmad Lawan read President Buhari’s letter of request at plenary, Tuesday afternoon, to the dismay of the protesters, many of whom took to their Twitter handles to express their discontent.
Some activists also voiced their opinions on Onochie’s nomination, querying the rationale behind appointing a rabid partisan presidential aide to a supposed independent body vested with the responsibility of managing the electoral process in the country.
The iconic female activist and a symbol of the ongoing youth protest Aisha Yesufu @Aisha_Yesufuu tweeted: “So Even in the middle of a severe protest, Buhari still appointed Lauretta Onochie Inec commissioner? A woman whose utterances are unbecoming of a government aide is warming up to be given new wings to fly wild. @MBuhari You should have done better because we have better heads!”
Also, the former chairman of Nigeria’s National Human Rights Commission, Prof Chidi Odinkalu, in a staccato of tweets called on the Senate to reject Onochie’s nomination, while accusing President Buhari of ulterior motives.
“Those who like to call @MBuhari “clueless” shd look at this nomination & understand how wrong they are. The man is anything but “clueless”. U don’t have to agree with him but he know exactly what he is doing & he’s consistent at it,” Odinkalu tweeted.
READ: President Buhari’s INEC Commissioner nominee is an APC member
“Well, @inecnigeria just got more interesting. @YIAGA u see the problem? Surely if “Independent” in @inecnigeria means anything, these guys will look to find a more suitable job for @Laurestar than REC. What is she going to do now, delete her tweets?!
“Whoever nominated @Laurestar to become an @inecnigeria commissioner is a cynical #NeverDoWell & if @NGRSenate proceeds to even consider the nomination, we shd all kiss #goodbye to elections in #Nigeria Mind u, there lots of vacancies to fill in @inecnigeria in the next 6 months.
“It seems clear that @NigeriaGov has no plans to see an end to these protests anytime soon or a return to a governable country. To #EndSARS & #SarsMustend, we probably have to add #CancelLaurestar & #RejectLauretta. This is wilful…!!
“We can #EndSARs & #CancelLaurestar at the same time. If citizens don’t rise up to insist that @NGRSenate #RejectLauretta, we can’t complain when we end up with a compromised @inecnigeria,” Odinkalu further tweeted.
Also nominated for confirmation as National Electoral Commissioners of the INEC were: Prof. Muhammad Sani Kallah, from Katsina; Prof. Kunle Cornelius Ajayi from Ekiti and Saidu Babura Ahmad, from Jigawa.
The letter reads in part: “Pursuant to Paragraph 14 of Part I(F) of the Third Schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, as amended, I hereby forward for confirmation by the Senate, the appointment of the following four (4) Commissioners for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).”