Contrary to rumours making the rounds on the imminent removal of INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, the Presidency through a source in the office of the National Security Adviser, NSA, has stated that it was all a ploy by the opposition to tarnish the image of the president.
According to a Presidency official, “the rumoured sack of Jega is not from the Presidency, but part of the propaganda by the opposition to soil the good name of the President, to discredit the government and cause trouble.”
The top official noted that the current administration is a law-abiding government that “follows the constitution in the discharge of its duties, including the Chairman of INEC or any member for that matter.
“The laws are clear about the question of leaving or not leaving and government has nothing to do with that. The man has a job to do and please allow him to do the job without dragging government into it and the man working under the rule of law.
“This is the government that has been obeying the rule of law and is not going to abandon its adherence to it. Please, they should allow Professor Jega to do his work and stop heating up the polity.”
INEC on Tuesday also debunked such claims saying the chairman would remain in office to oversee the coming general elections.
In a telephone interview with Premiumtimes, Jega’s media assistant, Kayode Idowu, denied knowledge of moves to ask his boss to proceed on terminal leave preparatory to his exit in June.
“I’m not aware that he is going on terminal leave. He has an election to conduct. You don’t go on terminal leave when you have an election to conduct.”
Mr. Idowu said the commission regulates its service procedures, and “shall not be regulated by any other law”.
