As President, I won’t appoint past INEC chair as ambassador – Atiku

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s nomination of the immediate past Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, for an ambassadorial position, saying he would never make such a move if he were president.

Atiku, who contested the 2023 presidential election under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said the decision raises “serious concerns” and risks being interpreted as a political reward rather than a merit-based appointment.

“Let me state without ambiguity: under no circumstance would I, as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, nominate the immediate past INEC Chairman for an ambassadorial position,” Atiku wrote in a post on his X account on Thursday.

He argued that the nomination “presents terrible optics for an administration already struggling with credibility,” adding that it sends the wrong message to the electoral body.

“It risks appearing as a quid pro quo rather than a recognition of merit. It sends the wrong message to the current @inecnigeria leadership; that partisan, compromised, or poorly executed elections may ultimately be rewarded,” he said.

Atiku added that it was “morally indefensible” for an electoral umpire at the centre of one of Nigeria’s most disputed elections to become a beneficiary of its outcome.

“This is not the path to strengthening our democracy or restoring public trust in our institutions,” he said.

Meanwhile, President Tinubu’s nomination of Yakubu is currently awaiting legislative consideration.