The remarks made by former President Olusegun Obasanjo regarding the recent elections in Nigeria have drawn criticism from the Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide.

The former president’s comments against Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the head of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), were also criticized by the organization.

The former president called the 2023 general elections a farce and demanded that INEC be led by new, trustworthy individuals with brief terms in order to thwart corruption and restore confidence during the Chinua Achebe Leadership Forum at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, USA.

The electoral authority was also accused by him of purposefully undermining the 2023 general election process.

“It is imperative that we ensure the INEC chairperson and his or her staff are thoroughly vetted. The vetting exercise should yield dispassionate, non-partisan actors with impeccable reputations.

“To stop unwanted political interference and corruption and restore voters’ faith in the electoral institutions, Nigeria must make sure that new, credible INEC leadership is appointed at the federal, state, local government, and municipal—city, town, and village levels—with brief tenures.

“Before 2023, the BVAS and IReV were hailed as technological innovations that could improve our election results’ accuracy and transparency, eradicate the possibility of election tampering, and increase public confidence in election results,” Obasanjo stated.

In response, Mazi Okwu Nnabuike, National President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youth Council Worldwide, charged that the former president had set the groundwork for a defective electoral system in the nation.

In a statement, Okwu claimed that election results were declared during the previous president’s administration while voters were still waiting in line to cast their ballots throughout Nigeria.

At the homes of lawmakers and the government, the results were written. Obasanjo popularized the phrase “go to court,” which meant that those who were sobbing should go to court and that the only thing that mattered was for INEC to proclaim the president’s favorite candidate the victor.

It is understandable why the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, a man of integrity, expressed his disapproval of the election that put him in office. Okwu stated that the election in question took place during Obasanjo’s president.

He claims that while in power, Obasanjo did not introduce any significant election reforms.