Edo REC: Being Wike’s cousin shouldn’t affect my appointment

Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Edo, Anugbum Onuoha, has said being related to Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), should not stop him from serving as an official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had asked INEC to redeploy Onuoha from Edo over his relationship with the Minister.

But INEC said it would not accede to the request of the ruling party in Edo, saying the election is not about the REC.

“The REC for Edo State will not be redeployed. The governorship election will be conducted on September 21, 2024 in 4,519 polling units, not in the REC’s office.”

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“In the same manner, polling unit results will be declared by the respective Presiding Officers after the voting, ballot sorting and counting processes, in the presence of accredited party agents and other stakeholders,” Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, said in a statement.

In an interview with Channels Television on Friday, the REC asked Nigerians to ignore his relationship with Wike.

“It is a fact that I am a cousin to the minister. On my appointment, I was invited by the senate. The senate screened and confirmed me. I was sworn in by my chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu.”

“I was posted to Edo last year. Nobody complained that I’m a cousin to the minister. Of course, I’m a cousin to the minister. What we should be talking about at this time is capacity. Do you have the capacity to conduct the election? Are you competent enough?

“From my background, I am an associate professor of law. People should ask, ‘can he do this job? Has he done a similar thing before?’ Yes, I was an electoral commissioner in Rivers state’s RSIEC. Nobody complained.

“I’m coming from the university. The mere fact that I’m a cousin to Wike does not preclude me from being appointed. Am I not a Nigerian? What Nigerians should be after is the person’s competence and whether he has what it takes to handle the job. Those are the issues they should ask.”