By Joy Odor
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has on Tuesday commissioned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Annex Building which will complement the current headquarters.
During his speech at the groundbreaking ceremony which was made available to newsmen in a press statement by the Chief Press Secretary Rotimi, the INEC National Chairman, Professor Mahood Yakubu informed that the New Annex building will feature offices, meeting rooms, a conference center, a 1,000-seat auditorium, and a museum to showcase the history of elections in Nigeria.
“We are glad that the President found time to personally perform the ground breaking ceremony of the INEC Annex Building to complement the current headquarters of the Commission.
“For a long time, the Commission has been grappling with inadequate office accommodation. Our present national headquarters is severely congested. Commissioned in December 1997, it was originally planned to cater for eight Commission members (a Chairman and seven full-time National Commissioners), ten Departments/Directorates and 500 staff.
“Since then, the activities of the Commission have become more extensive and the staff strength at the headquarters has more than doubled.
“Today, there are 13 full-time Commission members (a Chairman and 12 National Commissioners), 22 Departments/Directorates and 1,048 staff. Consequently, every facility is overstretched from offices to meeting rooms for the Commission’s 15 standing Committees and other activities, including regular engagements with stakeholders” he said.
Professor Yakubu affirmed that national headquarters has led to severe congestion, with every facility overstretched.
According to him, the Commission has made efforts to alleviate the situation, including renting additional buildings, however, the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) has come to their rescue.
“This is not the first time the FCDA has provided office accommodation for INEC. They built our previous headquarters in Garki and our current headquarters.
“This project is a result of persistent efforts, and we’re grateful to the President for making it a reality. On behalf of the Commissioners and staff, I’d like to thank the President for his presence and support.
“Over the last ten years, we made every effort to alleviate the situation until sometime last year when the Ministry of the Federal Capital Territory came to the rescue. I wish to make it clear that this is not the first time that the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) is constructing an office for the Electoral Commission. When the Commission relocated its headquarters from Lagos to Abuja in 1991, it was the FCDA that provided it with offices in Garki to accommodate the national headquarters as well as the FCT office. When the facility became overstretched, the FCDA again built our present headquarters.
“We also appreciate the Senate President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Minister of the FCT, and all stakeholders for their presence and support” he narrated.
