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Senate screens Buhari’s aide, Onochie, five others as INEC commissioners

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The Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, on Wednesday, directed the Committee on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to screen for confirmation, the appointments of Ms. Lauretta Onochie, and five others as INEC commissioners.

Onochie, is Senior Special Assistant on Social Media to President Muhammadu Buhari.

This comes eight months after President Muhammadu Buhari sent the list of the nominees to the Senate for screening.

Protests among the members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the red chamber had stopped the process of the screening as the opposition federal lawmakers had accused Onochie, a presidential spokesperson, of unnecessarily slandering their party.

READ ALSO: INEC to unveil new polling units next week

The lawmakers also faulted the idea of making Onochie, who is a card-carrying member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), an INEC Commissioner to represent Delta State on the board of the commission.

Others on the list are, Prof. Muhammad Kallah (Katsina); Prof. Kunle Ajayi (Ekiti); Saidu Ahmad (Jigawa); Prof Sani Adam (North- Central); and Dr. Baba Bila (North-East).

The Senate INEC panel, which has Senator Kabiru Gaya as Chairman, has four weeks to conclude the screening and report back to the red chamber at plenary.

By Victor Uzoho

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