By Adeko Ukpa, Abuja

The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has applauded former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, for transforming Nigeria’s electoral process through sweeping technological reforms that curtailed election manipulation and strengthened voter integrity.

Speaking at a colloquium in Abuja on “Ten Years of Leadership of Prof. Mahmood Yakubu as INEC Chairman,” IPAC National Chairman, Alhaji Yusuf Dantalle, said Yakubu’s leadership ushered in an era where “votes truly counted” and political manipulation became nearly impossible.

Dantalle said the reforms made multiple voting, use of fake voter cards, and other forms of rigging extremely difficult. “In the past, results were manufactured and you had over 20 million votes appearing from nowhere,” he said. “What INEC under Professor Mahmood Yakubu did was to clean the voter register using technology, making it impossible to have more than one name per person.”

He noted that the introduction of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and digital cleaning of the voter register ensured that only genuine voters participated in elections. “We saw fake PVCs being dumped in gutters because they could not pass BVAS verification,” Dantalle said. “Even though voter turnout was low, the votes that were counted in 2023 were real votes from Nigerians — not manufactured figures.”

Caption: Resource persons and Panelists during the Colloquium on Ten Years of Leadership of Professor Mahmood Yakubu as Chairman of INEC

According to him, the outcome of recent elections showed that electoral power had shifted back to the people. “We saw sitting governors lose elections to the Senate in states like Enugu, Benue, and Kebbi because votes counted,” he said. “We saw Peter Obi, who had no councillors or local government chairmen, defeat an incumbent president in Lagos. That was possible because of Yakubu’s technology-driven reforms.”

Ending Candidate Manipulation

The IPAC Chairman highlighted that before Yakubu’s tenure, political parties could manipulate the process of submitting candidates’ names. “Parties used to arrive with trucks of documents from primaries, paying or influencing officials to alter names,” he said. “Yakubu stopped that through an online portal that allowed parties to upload candidates directly. The system automatically rejects names of those who didn’t win primaries, reducing pre-election litigations.”

He stressed that Yakubu ensured inclusivity by involving political parties and civil society in every innovation. “No reform was implemented without stakeholder input,” he said, noting that INEC trained party officials to use the new platforms to upload candidates and party agents’ lists.

Dantalle added that Yakubu’s reforms also tightened political party registration. “Before now, one man could register a political party with his wife as women leader and his son as secretary,” he said. “Today, with INEC’s new criteria, every founding member must possess a valid PVC. That’s why the registration of new parties has become more stringent.”

‘Technology as Infrastructure, Not Novelty’

Delivering the keynote lecture, Prof. Emmanuel Aiyede of the University of Ibadan described Yakubu’s decade-long tenure as a “quiet but profound technological revolution” that redefined Nigeria’s elections. He said the introduction of BVAS, the INEC Results Viewing Portal (IReV), and the digitalisation of nomination and registration processes turned technology into the “grammar of electoral credibility.”

“The real legacy of Yakubu lies not in the machines themselves but in the institutional mindset he created,” Aiyede said. “He helped shift INEC from seeing technology as a novelty to treating it as infrastructure. Technology cannot replace integrity, but it can amplify it and make manipulation traceable.”

Aiyede urged INEC to consolidate Yakubu’s achievements by professionalising its staff and using data for long-term democratic planning, constituency delimitation, voter education, and logistics. “Machines can authenticate fingerprints, but only human integrity can authenticate elections,” he said.

Transparency and Inclusiveness

Executive Director, Centre for Transparency Advocacy, Faith Nwadishi, described Yakubu’s era as one that deepened transparency and opened INEC to collaboration. “He institutionalised continuous voter registration, expanded consultations with political parties, civil society, and the media, and even introduced the first creche at INEC headquarters to support nursing mothers,” she said.

Nwadishi, however, cautioned that challenges such as vote buying, insecurity, and voter apathy persist. “Innovation alone is not enough,” she said. “Institutional reform, civic responsibility, and political will must match our technological progress.”

As INEC transitions into a post-Yakubu era, speakers at the colloquium agreed that his tenure marked a defining chapter in Nigeria’s democratic evolution, one where technology became the cornerstone of electoral credibility and citizens’ votes finally began to count.

From Adeko Ukpa, Abuja

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko, on Saturday, donated a fully furnished office complex to the National Business and Technical Examinations Board (NABTEB) in Sokoto.

Wamakko, a former Governor of Sokoto state, speaking during the official handover ceremony of the building, reaffirmed his long-standing commitment to promoting technical and vocational education in Nigeria.

He described the gesture as a continuation of his lifelong passion for education, which he said remains the foundation of national development and youth empowerment.

Wamakko said: “This handover ceremony is not the end of our relationship; it is the beginning of a partnership that will yield tremendous benefits for technical and vocational education in Nigeria.

“The only sustainable way to empower people is to give them skills. You can give a man money or food, but if you give him a skill, you have given him a future.”

Photo caption: Minister of State for Works, Barrister Bello Muhammad Goronyo (centre) who represented Senator (Dr.) Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko; former Secretary to Sokoto State Government, Ambassador Sahabi Isah (right); and Registrar/Chief Executive Officer, National Business and Technical Examinations Board (NABTEB), Dr. Mohammed Aminu Mohammed during the handover/inauguration of an ultra-modern office building in Sokoto donated to NABTEB by Senator (Dr.) Wamakko on Saturday, 18th October, 2025.

The former Sokoto governor explained that his decision to build and donate the edifice to NABTEB stemmed from his belief in the transformative power of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

He noted that empowering young Nigerians with practical skills was the surest way to tackle unemployment, poverty, and underdevelopment.

He said: “As a governor, education was at the heart of my administration’s agenda. We built and renovated schools, recruited teachers, and supported thousands of students with scholarships.

“That commitment has continued in the Senate through my constituency projects and personal interventions, including the establishment of North-West University, Kalambaina.”

Wamakko added that by strengthening NABTEB, he was helping to strengthen the entire technical education sector.

“NABTEB sets the standards for business, technical, and vocational education. By supporting NABTEB, we are directly supporting Nigeria’s future workforce and productivity,” he said.

He pledged to mobilise other lawmakers, former governors, and business leaders to support NABTEB’s mission.

“This donation is just the beginning. I will continue to stand by NABTEB to ensure it has the facilities and resources needed to fulfill its mandate,” he added.

Receiving the building on behalf of the Board, NABTEB’s Registrar/Chief Executive, Dr. Mohammed Aminu Mohammed, described the donation as a monumental act of patriotism and a testament to Wamakko’s visionary leadership.

Mohammed said: “This day marks a significant milestone in NABTEB’s history. Distinguished Senator Wamakko has shown that true leadership is not about position but about impact.

“This building is not just bricks and mortar, it is a beacon of hope and a foundation for a stronger future in technical and vocational education.”

The Registrar explained that the new office would greatly enhance NABTEB’s operational capacity by improving administrative efficiency, expanding staff accommodation, and providing better facilities for training and documentation.

“With this building, we will be able to process examinations, results, and certifications faster and more efficiently.

“It will also serve as a training hub for capacity building and as a secure centre for the management of examination records,” Mohammed said.

The NABTEB boss pledged that the Board would ensure optimal utilisation and maintenance of the facility.

“We will not take this gift for granted. Every part of this edifice will be put to productive use in line with our mandate,” he said.

He also called on other well-meaning Nigerians and corporate organisations to emulate Wamakko’s example by investing in the nation’s education sector.

“Government alone cannot do it. The future of technical and vocational education depends on collective effort and sustained investment,” Mohammed said.

The ceremony, attended by government officials, traditional leaders, education stakeholders, and community members, was held at the new NABTEB office complex in Sokoto.

Wamakko’s donation is expected to significantly strengthen NABTEB’s presence in Northern Nigeria and support its goal of producing a skilled and self-reliant workforce capable of driving industrial and economic growth.

From Adeko Ukpa. Abuja

Former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) Ambassador to East Africa and the Middle East, Comrade Timi Frank, has called on President Donald Trump and leaders of the international community to recognise opposition presidential candidate, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, as the duly elected President of Cameroon.

Frank made the call in a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday, following widespread allegations of President Paul Biya’s attempt to thwart the will of the people by again seeking to manipulate the results to elongate his stay in office.

Citing publicly posted polling unit results and region-by-region vote tallies, Frank asserted that the data clearly shows Tchiroma Bakary as the legitimate winner of the election.

“From all indications, the people of Cameroon have spoken through the ballot and overwhelmingly chosen Issa Tchiroma Bakary. But as we’ve seen too often in Africa, the will of the people is under threat from entrenched dictatorships,” he said.

Comrade Timi Frank

Frank condemned the Biya regime’s alleged intimidation, harassment, and violence against citizens protesting against attempt to upturn the results of the election, warning that any attempt to manipulate the outcome through the courts could push the nation into unprecedented crisis.

“Paul Biya, at 92, remains Africa’s longest-serving leader. His refusal to relinquish power despite popular rejection is a mockery of democracy,” Frank stated. “Cameroon is already burning because the youth are rejecting attempts to manipulate the outcome in favour of Biya. They know who truly won,” he said.

He appealed to the United States, European Union, African Union, and other democratic actors to withhold recognition of Biya and instead recognise Issa Tchiroma Bakary as the rightful president-elect.

He also urged them to impose targeted sanctions on the Biya regime if the electoral result is tampered with.

“I call on President Donald Trump and other global leaders to help Cameroonians by recognising Bakary and by imposing diplomatic and economic sanctions on Biya’s regime. The rigging of elections in Africa must stop. The time has come for the will of the people to prevail.”

Frank commended Trump for his recent diplomatic efforts in the Middle East and urged him to turn global attention to Africa’s deepening democratic crisis.

He warned that failure to hold leaders accountable could encourage further democratic backsliding across the continent, including Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.

“If the international community does not act now, what is happening in Cameroon may soon be replicated elsewhere, including Nigeria. The African Union must also act urgently. Silence is not neutrality — it is complicity,” he warned.

Frank also issued a strong plea to Cameroon’s military and police forces to end the violent crackdown on peaceful demonstrators and respect the right of citizens to protest.

“We call on Cameroon’s security forces to stop arresting, tear-gassing, and killing peaceful protesters. They must uphold the constitution and protect the people’s democratic rights,” he said.

He praised the courage of Cameroonian youth, who he described as the driving force behind the country’s democratic awakening.

“This young generation has decided that enough is enough. They are standing up to decades of authoritarian rule, and we join them in their quest to reclaim their nation peacefully and democratically,” Frank declared.

Drawing parallels to other political crises across Africa, Frank cited Ivory Coast, where President Alassane Ouattara, now 83, is reportedly seeking a controversial fourth term in office.

“From Cameroon to Ivory Coast, we are seeing the same dangerous pattern of leaders clinging to power. This must stop if Africa is to progress,” he said.

He called on world leaders to set a precedent for electoral justice in Africa.

“We urge all global democratic actors to recognise Bakary as the winner of this election. The time to act is now — to save Cameroon and defend democracy across Africa,” he said.