Senate Confirms Akpabio’s Ex-Chief Of Staff Umoren, Six Others as INEC RECs, Approves Auditor-General

The Senate has confirmed the appointment of Mr Umoren Umoren, a former aide of ex-Akwa Ibom State Governor Godswill Akpabio, as a Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Umoren was among the seven nominees confirmed by the Senate on Wednesday, despite the controversies that trailed his nomination by President Bola Tinubu.

Umoren, who was also a prominent member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom, had faced opposition from different groups and civil rights activists, who had asked Tinubu to revoke his appointment.

They had argued that Umoren was not fit to be a REC because of his partisan affiliation and alleged involvement in electoral malpractices in the past.

However, Tinubu had insisted on his nomination and had sent a letter to the Senate on Tuesday, requesting the confirmation of Umoren and other nominees. The letter stated that the request was in compliance with the constitutional provisions.

The Senate confirmed Umoren alongside Isah Shaka Ehimeakne (Edo), Oluwatoyin Babalola (Ekiti), Abubakar Ahmed Ma’aji (Gombe), Shehu Wahab (Kwara), Aminu Kasimi Idris (Nasarawa), and Mohammed Abubakar Sadiq (Niger). The nominees were screened on the floor of the Senate on Wednesday.

The remaining three nominees from Rivers, Zamfara and Lagos, Anugbum Onuoha, Abubakar Fawa Dambo and Bunmi Omoseyindemi were absent and would be screened at a later date.

The confirmed RECs are to serve a five-year term each, and can only be removed by the president and a two-thirds vote from the National Assembly.

The Senate also approved the nomination of Mr Shaakaa Chira as the Auditor-General for the Federation. Chira was nominated by Tinubu in October 2023 to fill the vacant position. He was screened by the Senate Committee on Public Accounts and found suitable for the job.

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