INEC’s review of Mahmood Yakubu’s 10-year tenure credits his leadership with transforming Nigeria’s electoral system through technology, reforms, and transparency-enhancing laws.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reviewed the decade-long leadership of its former chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, describing 2015–2025 as one of Nigeria’s most transformative electoral periods. In its publications Election Management in Nigeria: 2015–2025 and Innovations in Electoral Technology: 2015–2025, INEC said Yakubu’s tenure deepened technology use, strengthened laws, and built public trust.
Yakubu, the first INEC chair to serve two terms, oversaw two general elections, 19 governorship polls, and over 4,500 constituency elections. Key innovations under his watch included the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), and the Voter Enrolment Device (IVED). “The decade between 2015 and 2025 has been one of the most momentous in the history of election management in Nigeria,” Yakubu said, acknowledging challenges like violence, vote buying, and litigation.
The reports credited the 2022 Electoral Act with legalising digital result transmission and expanding INEC’s autonomy. Other reforms included voter access expansion, inclusive voting for vulnerable groups, and the creation of INEC’s digital training systems. Despite security and logistical hurdles, the Commission said Yakubu’s tenure laid a durable foundation for credible, technology-driven elections.