BREAKING: INEC Chairman Yakubu Steps Down A Month Early, Hands Over To Acting Chair
Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has handed over to May Agbamuche-Mbu, who will now serve as the Acting Chairman of the Commission.
Yakubu has officially bowed out as INEC Chairman after nearly a decade at the helm.
It was gathered that he was formally informed of his successor before meeting with the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) on Tuesday, where he announced his decision to leave office a month ahead of schedule.
His departure marks the end of a ten-year tenure during which he served two consecutive terms as the head of Nigeria’s electoral body.
“Mahmood Yakubu handed over to May Agbamuche-Mbu, an INEC Commissioner, after a brief ceremony at the INEC headquarters on Tuesday, where RECs and senior officials were present,” a top government source said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Naija News House reported that barring any last-minute changes, President Bola Tinubu was expected to nominate Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan (SAN) to succeed Prof. Yakubu as the INEC National Chairman.
It was reported that to formalise the appointment, the President had scheduled a meeting of the Council of State for this Thursday. Amupitan is both a kinsman and longtime legal counsel for Senator Dino Melaye.
On September 26, 2025, SaharaReporters exclusively reported that Amupitan had emerged as the likely candidate to succeed Yakubu as the INEC National Chairman.
It was earlier reported that President Tinubu directed Yakubu to proceed on leave before the official end of his tenure.
Sources described the move as a response to what they termed Yakubu’s “last-minute betrayal” of the All Progressives Congress (APC) government that appointed him.
Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma reportedly met with President Tinubu shortly after the president returned from a 12-day working vacation, alleging that Yakubu’s efforts to register new political parties toward the end of his tenure had disrupted Tinubu’s preparations for a second term.
Sources said that the governor also claimed that Yakubu was covertly supporting a candidate in the Imo State governorship election.
Following this briefing, Tinubu reportedly requested that Yakubu suspend all official duties and proceed on terminal leave.
The directive caused disruptions at INEC, leading to the abrupt cancellation of Yakubu’s final quarterly consultative meeting with political parties, as well as a planned session with civil society organisations.
Yakubu’s second five-year term was set to expire in the first week of December 2025 before he was directed by Tinubu to proceed on leave.
He was first appointed INEC Chairman on October 21, 2015, by then-President Muhammadu Buhari, succeeding acting chairperson Amina Zakari. Following Senate confirmation on October 29, 2015, he was sworn in on November 9, 2015.
After completing his first term in November 2020, Yakubu was nominated for a second and final term by President Buhari, confirmed by the Senate, and sworn in on December 1, 2020.
“Tinubu is shopping for Prof. Yakubu’s replacement, and Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan is likely to be the next INEC Chairman,” a top government source said.
