17
Jun
Jun
PRESIDENT TINUBU FLAGS OFF CONSTRUCTION OF NEW INEC ANNEX BUILDING IN ABUJA
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CapitalTimesNews / 1 week
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- 2 min read
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has officially flagged off the construction of a new annex building for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja. The ceremony, attended by top government officials, lawmakers, and electoral stakeholders, marks a significant milestone in the commission’s history. INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, described the new facility as a much-needed expansion to complement the commission’s overstretched national headquarters. “Today, we have 13 Commission members, 22 departments and directorates, and 1,048 staff at the headquarters alone,” Yakubu said. “All our facilities—offices, meeting rooms, and support spaces—are grossly overstretched. Even general staff meetings are now held outside the Commission’s premises.” The current headquarters, commissioned in 1997, was originally designed to accommodate eight Commission members, ten departments, and 500 staff. Yakubu explained that INEC had resorted to renting office buildings in Wuse Zone II due to space constraints, but the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) stepped in with a long-term solution. “This is not the first time the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) has come to our aid,” Yakubu noted. “When we relocated from Lagos to Abuja in 1991, the FCDA provided us offices in Garki, which later became our FCT office. When that was no longer sufficient, they built the present headquarters. Now, 34 years later, they are once again intervening to help us expand.” The new annex building will feature modern office spaces, multiple meeting and conference rooms, a 1,000-seat auditorium, and advanced IT infrastructure, including a dedicated section for the Election Monitoring and Support Centre (EMSC). The facility will also house a national election museum, serving as a digital and physical archive of Nigeria’s electoral history. Yakubu expressed gratitude to President Tinubu for personally attending the ceremony and supporting the initiative. “For me personally, this is a special moment,” he said. “After nearly ten years of pushing for this expansion, we are finally breaking ground.” President Tinubu emphasized the significance of the project, stating, “Today’s ceremony is not merely about bricks and mortar, it is about the strength of our democracy, the independence of our institutions, and the future of our electoral integrity.” He praised INEC’s role in sustaining Nigeria’s democratic process and commended the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, for initiating the project.
