Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has assured the Nigerian public that it is committed to neutrality and does not have a preference for any candidate.
INEC disclosed this in a social media statement on Wednesday after its Twitter handle, which is a source of electoral news and updates for Nigerians liked a tweet calling Peter Obi, the Presidential candidate for the Labour Party an “ opportunist”.
They said they would investigate the circumstances and take appropriate disciplinary actions.
Electoral Neutrality: INEC in the statement said it has zero preferential candidates as its allegiance is to the people of Nigeria, they said:
- “The attention of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been drawn to a post on its Twitter handle, liking a post relating to one of the 18 Presidential candidates. The Commission is an independent electoral body and does not have a preference for any candidate or political party.
- “The Commission assures all Nigerians of its neutrality and will conduct a general election that is free and fair to all. The allegiance of the Commission is to the people of Nigeria
- “In the meantime, the Commission is investigating the circumstances that led to the liking of the said post and will take appropriate disciplinary actions if an infraction is established.
What you should know
Nairametrics reported that The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) came under heavy criticism for liking a tweet disparaging the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi.
Nigerians accused the electoral umpire of showing its bias through the action. A like on a post on social media indicates that you approve of or concur with the message of the post.
In this case, the tweet that INEC liked was a story published by an online newspaper, Premium Times, with the headline: “Peter Obi: An opportunist won’t deliver Nigeria—Seun Kuti.”
