Former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Maurice Iwu, yesterday, refuted the interview circulating on various online media platforms attributed to him.
A statement signed by Philip Eze however, said the former INEC boss did not grant any interview to any person or news platform in the last seven years.
He described the purported interview in which Iwu compared the budget of the electoral commission as “mischievous, vexatious and out of context that it cannot be ignored.”
The statement said, “The general public should take note that Prof. Maurice Iwu did not grant any interview to any person or news platform yesterday, or in the last few days, or in the last few months, or in the last one year. The last interview Prof. Maurice Iwu granted, where he discussed issues pertaining to the electoral process in Nigeria, was seven years ago.”
“It is pertinent to note, for one, that the context in which one election is conducted is always different from that in which another one is held, even if the two elections are separated by a few days. It is unimaginable, therefore, that out of nowhere, a former helmsman of Nigeria’s electoral commission will embark on comparing the budget of one electoral activity and another similar exercise as the purported interview did. Again, the crucial questions are; what could be the motive for these publications and who is behind them?”
The statement noted that Iwu has a committed decision to refrain from making public comment on political matters, particularly the affairs of the election management body in Nigeria, which still subsists.
“The decision made by Prof. Maurice Iwu to refrain from making public comment on political matters, especially the affairs of the election management body in Nigeria still subsists. Only in the context of research and academic studies can Prof. Iwu consider discussing issues relating to the electoral process in Nigeria at the moment. And he has not had any such reason recently to engage in such discussion”, the statement added.