Jonathan Denies Plans To Remove Jega From INEC, Claims He Was Not Involved in The Election Postponement

President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday refuted reports in the media suggesting that he was planning to send the INEC chairman, Attahiru Jega on terminal leave with a view to retire him before the 2015 general polls rescheduled to begging March 28.

“I appointed the INEC chairman and all the resident electoral commissioners but I also have the constitutional powers to remove butwill not do so. I have not told anyone, I intend to remove Jega”, he stated.

“I was not consulted and I don’t want to be consulted. In 2011, INEC did not consult me. If they had informed me, I wouldn’t have wasted my time and government resources. For every trip I make, I know what federal government paid. For me to move to my village, my advance team will go there with all this road team and so on. So there is no way I would have gone to the village”, he added.

Stressing that he never intended to sack the INEC boss, the president said, “It is Mr. President that appoints every commissioner in INEC. The national commissioners and the RECs are my appointees.

“So, if I feel that Jega is not good enough for obvious reasons, there are provisions in the constitution which gives the person who appoints the power remove, but I have not told anybody that I am going to remove Jega. So, you see; I think some of these things are creation by people from one interest or the other. They are just causing confusion. The whole thing about the rescheduling of the elections, there are a lot of people who are using that opportunity to misinform Nigerians and create this confusion. (Leadership)