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Tag: Amina Zakari

  • INEC presents Tambuwal, Legislators-elect certificates of return

    The Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday presented Peoples Democratic Party candidate Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal and his running mate, Alhaji Muhammad Mannir Dan Iya their certificates of return.

    Also presented certificates of return were the 30 Assembly members-elect.

    Presenting the certificates, INEC National Commissioner in charge of Sokoto, Kebib and Zamfara states, Mrs. Amina Zakari, said the commission remained committed to the course of ensuring smooth and transparent conduct of elections.

    According to her: “While we have concluded the 2019 polls exercise, we are looking forward to 2023 with a reminder to Nigerians that sustainable democracy can only be achieved through peaceful, free, fair, transparent and credible polls.”

    Zakari urged politicians and political parties to always ensure democratic process dictate their activities through adherence to INEC guidelines as well as peaceful conducts before, during and after elections.

    She regretted that Sokoto state, which was known for its peaceful electioneering process, had in the just -concluded polls lost its place due to violence and other wrongs.

    “This is the first time in many years we are experiencing this. I will like to state clearly that narrow lead margin was not the only reason why elections are declared inconclusive but violence and other reasons,” she stated.

    Sokoto Returning Electoral Commissioner, Sadiq Musa Abubakar, who noted the journey to the successful conclusion of the elections in the state was not an easy task, said INEC was able to deliver a credible and transparent exercise that ensured every voted counted to the last moment when the rerun was conducted.

    “We conducted the 2019 elections without fear or favour but commitment to the realisation of an acceptable exercise.

    “All struggles and efforts towards this day are over. I urge the people of Sokoto state to join hands together and forge ahead for the development of the state in unity and progress.”

    Tambuwal reassured of his resilience to building a Sokoto state that would symbolise prosperity for the people.

    He said nothing would be left out in the course of transforming the state and its people.

  • PDP cries foul over alleged militarisation in Sokoto

    Sokoto State chapter of the People Democratic Party (PDP) has said that it will not accept anything short of free, fair and credible polls in tomorrow’s supplementary poll in the state.

    Speaking during an emergency press conference in Sokoto on Friday, its state chairman Alhaji Ibrahim Milgoma alleged that All Progressives Congress (APC) stalwarts and serving governors on the platform of the opposition from other states were in Sokoto to work for their governorship candidate and the party.

    “This is unacceptable and INEC must be neutral by upholding honesty in defence of its integrity as an independent umpire.

    READ ALSO: Sokoto re-run: Army extends show of force to six violence-prone LGAs

    “We are also aware that Mrs. Amina Zakari is in town. We are not against her coming if she is here to do the right thing. Otherwise, we will not take it.”

    Milgoma however said the party and its supporters were not also comfortable with the security arrangement, accusing them of seeming partisan.

    “We are calling on security agencies to discharge their duties with all honesty by ensuring a peaceful atmosphere for voters to exercise their franchise.

    “The people of Sokoto state are set to reelect our candidate (Tambuwal) by democratic means.

    “No intimidation, threat or the like can change their choice of Tambuwal.

    “Our votes will be defended to ensure that whoever wins in a free, fair and transparent contest should be given and we will follow him,” he said.

    Meanwhile, in a related outcry, the Nigerian Youth Coalition Against Electoral Violence (NYCAEV) northwest zone alleged massive deployment of security operatives to the state despite peaceful atmosphere.

    “This calls for concern as it is worrisome. The state has been taken over by combined forces of military, police and other security agents.

    “We have uncovered invitation and presence of APC governors and hired thugs camped in hotels in Sokoto to perpetrate acts that would force victory to them.

    “This is a threat to peaceful and credible rerun elections in Sokoto and Kano states respectively,” the coalition stated.

  • We’re pained by ‘blatant lies’ against Zakari, says family

    The family of Mrs Amina Zakari on Monday said it was pained by what it described as a “blatant lies” that she is President Muhammadu Buhari’s niece.

    A statement by the family, signed by Isah Zakari, a lawyer, said Mrs Zakari, the National Commissioner in charge of Health and Welfare at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), is not Buhari’s blood relation.

    The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) had alleged she was the President’s blood relation following her appointment as head of INEC’s Collation Centre, adding that it was in a bid to rig the general election.

    But, the family said Mrs Zakari is a patriotic Nigerian who has served her country faithfully and honestly for years without blemish.

    “We are, therefore, pained by the report that portrays Amina Zakari working to sabotage INEC’s firm determination to advance the democratic journey by creating a conducive atmosphere for citizens to exercise their voting rights,” the statement said.

    Debunking the claim that she is related to the President by blood, the family said Mrs Zakari’s mother was from Daura but was born and bred in Kano and was not Buhari’s sister.

    “It is true that Buhari’s sister was once married into the family. The union was short lived and did not produce a child. This all happened well before Mrs. Zakari was born,” the statement said.

    According to the family, a Kano politician Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, who allegedly first made the claim that Mrs Zakari was born by Buhari’s sister, had since recanted.

    The Zakari family said it was laughable that Mrs Zakari, appointed National Commissioner by former President Goodluck Jonathan, can no longer perform any function in INEC because she is a supposed relation of the President.

    “The pieces of information being sold to the press about Mrs. Amina Zakari by the PDP are absolutely false, tendentious, malicious and highly reprehensible.

    “Mrs. Zakari has challenged anyone with evidence against her of any misdeed to come forth and prove their case,” the statement said.

    Besides, the family said Mrs Zakari diligently served under three different Presidents in various capacities, adding that it was rather unfortunate that she has been made a victim of “a vicious campaign to reduce her accomplishments to purported blood relationship while ignoring her vast and accomplished resume”.

    Read Also: Women group defends Zakari

    Highlighting the National Commissioner’s credentials, the statement said: “Mrs Zakari attended the acclaimed Queens College on merit, being first from Kano State in the Common Entrance in her graduating year from primary school.

    “Mrs. Zakari also was one of the top students in her graduating Pharmacy B.Sc class in Ahmadu Bello University.

    “She spent time raising a family giving birth to five children while her late husband took roles of increasing capacity in UBA and Union Bank.

    “She worked as a consultant for the Petroleum (Special) Trust Fund but it is an absolute falsehood that she was appointed to that role by President Buhari.

    “She started as a sub consultant of Afri Projects Consortium and was eventually promoted to the health portfolio for the Consortium after the departure of the late Dr. Aminu Safana (whom she worked for) when he joined partisan politics in 1999.

    “She also served as Executive Secretary for Health in the FCT Administration under the Obasanjo administration’s second term.”

    According to the family, President Buhari did not attend the Council of State meeting where President Jonathan presented her nomination.

    “What is unfortunate is instead of celebrating an accomplished woman to support diversity in our polity and groom our future female leaders; we are stuck on belittling Mrs. Zakari’s accomplishments to mere familial ties.

    “If we begin to harangue and harass our officials for family ties (which they do not control) over competence we shall have no one to serve.

    “A cursory review of INEC and other institutions will reveal a wealth of family and professional ties and contradictions. Does that mean everyone should resign?

    “Enough is enough. Leave our mother, daughter, sister alone to serve the nation as she has done so diligently over her life and career,” the family added.

  • Amaechi: PDP hits Buhari over Amaechi’s leaked tapes

    The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organization (PPCO) has mocked President Muhammadu Buhari over leaked audio tapes in which Rotimi Amaechi allegedly vilified the President.
    Amaechi, who is the Minister of Transportation, is also the Director General of Buhari’s Presidential Campaign Organisation.
    In a statement on Monday by the spokesman for the PDP Campaign, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, the party urged Buhari to throw in the towel and end his re-election bid.
    The PPCO noted that since the audio recording leaked last Friday, neither  Rotimi Amaechi nor the Buhari Campaign Organization has mustered the strength to deny or offer any cogent explanation on the matter.

    The main opposition party said the continued silence from Amaechi and the Buhari Campaign Organisation was an indication that the President has lost the loyalty of his support base.

    The statement said, “This development amply shows that the Buhari Campaign Organization is in agreement with Amaechi that President Buhari’s incompetence, nepotism, insensitivity and corruption, and not the 16 years of the PDP in government, are responsible for the myriad of problems facing our nation.

    Read Also: Buhari vows to secure the country more

    “Our party, therefore, holds that President Buhari now lacks the honour and integrity to campaign and seek for votes since his Campaign Organization is holding him directly responsible for the biting economic hardship and security problems our nation has been facing in almost four years of his tenure, as expressly communicated in the leaked recording.

    “Amaechi’s confession, that President Buhari does not listen and that he does not give a hoot about the sufferings of Nigerians but laughs and glees at the misfortunes and plights of our citizens shows the world the level of disdain President Buhari holds Nigerians.

    “Mr. President is now merely clinging on straws and walking by his own shadows and Nigerians can now see why he is desperate to use his niece in INEC, Amina Zakari, to rig himself back to power”.

    The PPCO challenged President Buhari to dare Amaechi and speak out on the alleged poor rating by his Campaign DG, saying that the President lacked the rectitude to canvass for votes from Nigerians.

    “We therefore urge President Buhari to advise himself, having seen that he has no support left, by throwing in the towel instead of allowing his desperation bring more opprobrium to his person and plunge the nation into unnecessary crisis.

    “Finally, we hope that no harm will befall some members of the APC Presidential Campaign Organization for the exercise of their freedom of expression”.

  • Amina Zakari on Buhari: He’s not my uncle or cousin

    •Says she won’t be distracted by controversy over appointment

    NATIONAL Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Hajiya Amina Zakari, yesterday joined in the controversy trailing her appointment as head of the election collation centre and declared that she is not President Muhammadu Buhari’s cousin as being speculated in some quarters.

    “I’m not his niece, I am not his cousin; and, on this job, I was appointed since 2010 by President Jonathan and prior to that, I was appointed as SA (special assistant) to President Obasanjo and I have done my work conscientiously over the years as a patriotic citizen of Nigeria,” Mrs Zakari told the BBC.

    She said she would not allow the controversy over her appointment distract her from performing her duties to the nation.

    “I don’t think I should be distracted now that elections are coming. I will continue doing my work. I will continue to serve my country to the best of my ability, with the best of intentions.”

    She added: “President Muhammadu Buhari is my president as everybody else’s president.

    “He is not my cousin, he is not my uncle as is being claimed; but I know him as my leader and the leader of the nation.”

    She spoke, 24 hours after the Presidency dismissed as a lie, claim by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that Zakari is a blood relation of Buhari.

    The Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Mallam Garba Shehu said Buhari and Mrs Zakari  “don’t share a family relationship.”

    He said: “In another mendacious press release, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has continued their baseless accusations regarding Hajiya Amina Zakari, a commissioner in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) accusing her of partiality and casting doubts about her integrity as an electoral commissioner.

    “In their desperation, they forget that it was the PDP government that appointed her in the first place and they keep lying, as they have been caught doing on so many issues, by imputing a blood relationship between her and President Muhammadu Buhari.

    “An inter-marriage occurred in their extended families, so the imputation of blood relationship between the President and the electoral commissioner is a simple lie.

    “What is even more curious about all the fuss coming from the PDP is that they, as a ruling party picked Mrs Zakari, judging her by her own merit and made her an electoral commissioner.

    “She served so well with distinction as can be verified from the records that President Buhari approved the recommendation that she be reappointed, as he did other PDP nominees for second-term of four years.

    “PDP, therefore, has no moral right to keep harassing this hardworking mother unless they have a hidden agenda.

    “By this statement, the PDP is guilty of scoring an own goal and two, of harassing an innocent citizen on the basis of a lie, pure and simple.”

    The Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, in a separate statement on Friday also denied that Buhari and Mrs. Zakari are blood relations.

    The  Commission’s  Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Mr. Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, also speaking on the matter said Zakari would not be dropped  on account of the opposition to her appointment, saying she would have nothing to do with the collation of results or validity of votes.

    He said Yakubu, by virtue of his position as INEC chairman, is the Chief Electoral Commissioner and Returning Officer for the Presidential Election and will not delegate the responsibility to anyone.

  • Sack Amina Zakari from INEC, PDP tells NASS

    The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organization (PPCO) yesterday charged  the National Assembly to immediately commence the process of removing  Mrs Amina Zakari from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    Zakari was on Thursday named the chairman of the Presidential Election Collation Centre Committee for the 2019 election, a development the main opposition party vehemently rejected.

    Spokesman for the PDP Campaign Organisation, Kola Ologbondiyan, told reporters in Abuja that the National Assembly should step in to save the nation from imminent political crisis.

    Ologbondiyan said the party’s position  is predicated on the fact that President Muhammadu Buhari is an uncle to Mrs Zakari.

    The Presidency has dismissed the claim as a lie.

    The PDP added that the Buhari presidency has been using Amina Zakari to bear pressure on INEC even to the extent of brazenly foisting her as the collation officer for the presidential election, to enable President Buhari announce himself as winner.

    Ologbondiyan further said, “The PPCO holds that a credible electoral commission must be completely impartial, transparent, totally independent and immune from external control by interested entities. These are qualities INEC can no longer lay claim to as long as Amina Zakari remains a member of the commission.

    “By foisting Mrs. Amina Zakari to lead the final process of the election, President Buhari is seeking a way to annex INEC, practically, take over the collation of results, and announce himself the winner.

    “This is a clear invitation to anarchy and a huge political crisis capable of derailing our democracy because Nigerians, across the board, are already in vehement rejection of this self-succession plot and are now, more than ever before, ready to use every necessary means available and accessible to them in a democracy to protect our democratic process”.

    The main opposition party said as long as Amina Zakari remained in INEC, the commission cannot be trusted.

    “It will interest Nigerians to know that following public outcry against her nomination, Amina Zakari’s agents, last night, surreptitiously attempted to compromise the media by sending secret messages to emails of editors with the view to watering down and swaying the direction of information on her provocative appointment to lead the collation of presidential election results.

    “Also, we have been informed of how Mrs. Zakari led other top INEC officials to a secret meeting with some top officials of the Buhari Campaign Organization (BCO) in Abuja on ways to introduce the controversial Incidence Form under a new name and use such to manipulate the collation of results.

    “We therefore urge Nigerians and lovers of democracy all over the world to unite in condemning this scheme by the Buhari presidency to use Amina Zakari to enmesh our election into unnecessary controversy and trigger a political crisis in our country, just because they have realised that President Buhari cannot win the presidential election.

    “President Buhari and Amina Zakari should know that Nigerians have made up their minds in rallying behind our presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, as their next president and no amount of machination, shenanigans and scheming will stop this resolve.

    It added that the Buhari presidency will never have its way in rigging the coming elections through a self-succession strategy, vowing that the PDP would insist that votes must count and that only the will of Nigerians, as expressed at the ballot will prevail.

  • Ohanaeze youths, others back Amina Zakari’s appointment

    The Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC) and a coalition of Igbo groups have expressed support for the appointment of Hajiya Amina Zakari as the head of INEC collation centre for the forthcoming presidential election.

    The OYC made its position known after a meeting with the coalition comprising   World Igbo Youth Congress, Southeast Women Professionals, Igbo Students Movement and Forum of Biafra Agitators.

    President General of OYC, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro,   said Mrs. Zakari’s appointment  “ will not influence the voting pattern especially that of Igbo votes across the 36 states of country as counting will be live on electronic media.

  • INEC: we won’t drop Zakari as collation centre chair

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Friday declared that it would not drop Hajiya Amina Zakari as chairperson of the 2019 Elections Results Collation Committee.

    It said that contrary to fears in some quarters, Mrs, Zakari, who is alleged to be a niece to the President, will have nothing to do with the collation of the presidential poll results.

    It said by law, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmud Yakubu is the Chief Electoral Commissioner and Returning Officer for the Presidential Election.

    Yakubu, according to the commission, cannot and will not delegate his responsibility as the Returning Officer to anyone no matter the circumstance.

    The position of INEC was made known by its Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Mr. Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi in an interview  with our correspondent.

    “We cannot and we won’t drop Amina Zakari as the chairperson of the Collation Centre Management Committee.

    “She is only in charge of a committee to prepare the facility for the collation of results,” Osaze-Uzzi said.

    “She was also very involved in negotiating with the ICC management in 2015 for the use of the facility so her duty is to ensure the facility is ready.

    “She has no role whatsoever with the process of collation of results.

    “The job of the chairperson and other members is to make sure that the centre is conducive with internet access for INEC officials, representatives of political parties, international and local observers.

    “The committee has nothing to do with the process of compiling results.

    “They are just blowing the scope of the committee out of proportion. It’s a needless controversy; not an issue at all.”

    Responding to a question, Osaze-Uzzi said: “By law, the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmud Yakubu will superintend over the collation of results. He cannot assign the responsibility and he has not assigned the responsibility to anybody.

    “He is going to be in charge of collation of results.  It is he who decides the validity of votes and any issues in the election as the Returning Officer.

    “INEC wants to reassure Nigerians that its chairman as the Chief Electoral Officers will be assisted by trusted Nigerians who he will appoint as collation officers in all the states.”

     

  • Presidency: Zakari, not Buhari’s blood relation

    Reacting to allegations by the main opposition party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), the Presidency on Friday said that the party is clutching at straws.

    A statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, reads “In another mendacious press release, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has continued their baseless accusations regarding Hajiya Amina Zakari, a commissioner in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) accusing her of partiality and casting doubts about her integrity as an electoral commissioner.

    “In their desperation, they forget that it was the PDP government that appointed her in the first place and they keep lying, as they have been caught doing on so many issues, by imputing a blood relationship between her and President Muhammadu Buhari.”

    He said that President Buhari and Commissioner Amina Zakari don’t share a family relationship.

    Read Also: Buhari: We’ve put a stop to pensioners’ dehumanization

    He said “An inter-marriage occurred in their extended families, so the imputation of blood relationship between the President and the electoral commissioner is a simple lie.

    “What is even more curious about all the fuss coming from the PDP is that they, as a ruling party picked Mrs Zakari, judging her by her own merit and made her an electoral commissioner.

    “She served so well with distinction as can be verified from the records that President Buhari approved the recommendation that she be reappointed, as he did other PDP nominees for second-term of four years.

    “PDP, therefore, has no moral right to keep harassing this hardworking mother unless they have a hidden agenda.

    “By this statement, the PDP is guilty of scoring an own goal and two, of harassing an innocent citizen on the basis of a lie, pure and simple.” he stated

  • Ohanaeze protests appointment of Amina Zakari as head of election collation

    President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide has told Nigerians to hold the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Federal Government responsible should anything happen to the nation’s democracy.

    This is as Nwodo called on Mrs. Amina Zakari, a national commissioner in INEC to resign from the commission because of her blood relation to President Muhammadu Buhari.

    Reacting to INEC’s appointment of Mrs. Zakari as head of presidential election collation committee yesterday, Nwodo said it was bad enough that Mrs. Zakari was allowed to continue to serve in INEC and worse by INEC appointing her in the new position.

    “It’s like Rangers VS Kano Pillars and Kano Pillars is allowed to nominate a referee. It’s impossible for justice to be done. In a civilized clime Amina Zakari should have resigned,” he maintained.

    “I expected the APC government having come to power through a free and fair election conducted by another president, they should not destroy the history.

    “I call on Amina Zakari to honourably resign.

    Read also: Atiku advises INEC not to use incident forms

    “Whatever happens to our democracy tomorrow, they (INEC and Federal Government) should hold themselves responsible.

    “With continued membership of Mrs. Zakari in the commission, the corporate personality of INEC is seriously whittled down; making her head of collation committee is worse than anything anybody can imagine,” he said.