Osun Election: Garba Shehu Questions Amupitan’s Silence Amid INEC Praise

Former presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, has questioned the silence of Professor Joash Amupitan, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), following widespread commendation of the commission’s conduct of the recent Osun State governorship election.

Shehu, in a statement on Tuesday, said the seamless uploading of election results to INEC’s IReV portal had earned praise from civil society groups and local and international observers. He wondered why Amupitan had yet to publicly celebrate what he described as an outstanding performance by the electoral body.

He said the INEC chairman’s humility and restraint were unusual in a country where public officials often rush to claim credit for achievements, asking: “Where is the captain of the ship, Professor Amupitan”q

His statement reads; Where is Professor Amupitan?

I don’t know him, and we never met.
I have no reason to wish to meet him, either. When they nominated him as the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the nation received the shocking disclosure of his 2020 legal brief to the international community, in which he claimed that the violence in the country was a Muslim pogrom against Christians.

The violence affected and still affects followers of all religions and speakers of every language.

For this reason, I, among many others, felt bad about the assertion he made and assumed that he was not a good choice for that office. This country’s elections had incrementally got better with each new leadership.

Professor Jega gave the nation its best election since the disputed June 12, 1993, that produced Chief MKO Abiola, now recognised as a duly elected president who did not, however, take the office.

Professor Mahmud Yakubu did the impossible by rallying the civil society, CSOs, and local and foreign observers to approve all his elections.

Not one election under him was ever rejected by any serious observer or CSO.
Now, look at what has just happened in Osun State. Under Amupitan’s leadership, the country has attained a transparent electoral process.

Everyone – civil society, the EU, local and foreign observers are commending this standout performance, praising the exceptional skill and determination to improve the process as manifested by INEC’s seamless uploading of the governorship election results to its IReV.

With all the loud acclaim that followed, however, I have been asking myself: where is the captain of the ship, Professor Amupitan?

He hasn’t picked up the microphone, 48 hours hence, or appeared before the TV cameras to proudly show off the success. Where is he?

We are a country of wilful behaviour, chest-beating public officials who are proudly and aggressively proclaiming success without achieving half of what we are talking about here. Where is he?

We are not used to seeing this kind of humility, patience, and restraint. Isn’t it fair that the man should come out of his shell and dance to the drums in celebration?