April 28, 2010
The decision by the Acting President to send Professor Maurice Iwu on pre-retirement leave, obviously an unnecessary euphemism for a long overdue sack, is doubtless an act of courage for a regime that is a continuing beneficiary of Iwu’s acts of electoral infamy. Iwu was a terrible yoke on a nation already wobbling under a tiny cabal whose politics was defined and limited to venality and abuse of power.
The decision by the Acting President to send Professor Maurice Iwu on pre-retirement leave, obviously an unnecessary euphemism for a long overdue sack, is doubtless an act of courage for a regime that is a continuing beneficiary of Iwu’s acts of electoral infamy. Iwu was a terrible yoke on a nation already wobbling under a tiny cabal whose politics was defined and limited to venality and abuse of power.
Although I must confess to being overjoyed at Iwu’s belated ouster from superintending elections or anything, and I would certainly look for the next opportunity to raise a glass with some of my comrades, it would be extremely unwise, nay irresponsible, to suggest that by removing Iwu, the Acting President has signed on to electoral reforms. We need to know who is now in charge of INEC and how long that fellow would act and in whose interest he or she would act.
We also must remind ourselves that not one of the existing INEC Commissioners can be said to have shown any courage that can lead to the conclusion that a useful as opposed to a usable replacement to Iwu’s unabashed misbehaviour might be found in their rank. The conclusion is obvious: the Acting President has to disband INEC as constituted and show in all ways possible that the body becomes an independent umpire. Unless this is done, I doubt if anyone would take him seriously. The Acting President may be playing his own games, but let us face it, Iwu's removal shows some courage.
But then should Iwu just go like that? I think not. He should be asked to render a financial and political account of the period he was imposed on us. Whatever the game in Abuja may be, we deserve some celebration for this riddance, even if momentarily as I suspect.
Although I must confess to being overjoyed at Iwu’s belated ouster from superintending elections or anything, and I would certainly look for the next opportunity to raise a glass with some of my comrades, it would be extremely unwise, nay irresponsible, to suggest that by removing Iwu, the Acting President has signed on to electoral reforms. We need to know who is now in charge of INEC and how long that fellow would act and in whose interest he or she would act.
We also must remind ourselves that not one of the existing INEC Commissioners can be said to have shown any courage that can lead to the conclusion that a useful as opposed to a usable replacement to Iwu’s unabashed misbehaviour might be found in their rank. The conclusion is obvious: the Acting President has to disband INEC as constituted and show in all ways possible that the body becomes an independent umpire. Unless this is done, I doubt if anyone would take him seriously. The Acting President may be playing his own games, but let us face it, Iwu's removal shows some courage.
But then should Iwu just go like that? I think not. He should be asked to render a financial and political account of the period he was imposed on us. Whatever the game in Abuja may be, we deserve some celebration for this riddance, even if momentarily as I suspect.
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