Falana: Tinubu lacks power to place INEC chairman on terminal leave.

Prominent human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, has stated that President Bola Tinubu has no constitutional authority to compel the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, to proceed on terminal leave.

Falana made this clarification on Friday following viral claims that President Tinubu had allegedly ordered Yakubu to step aside due to unresolved political disagreements with the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The reports, which quickly spread across social media, suggested that the INEC chairman was instructed to suspend official duties ahead of the expiration of his tenure in October 2025.

The speculation intensified after INEC abruptly cancelled its scheduled consultative meetings with political parties and civil society organisations earlier in the week.

Falana Cites Constitutional SafeguardsSpeaking to journalists, Falana explained that the Nigerian Constitution clearly protects the independence of INEC from executive interference.Quoting Sections 154(1) and 157(1) of the 1999 Constitution, he noted that although the President nominates the INEC chairman, the appointment requires Senate approval, while removal demands a two-thirds Senate majority on grounds of incapacity or misconduct.

“Unlike other federal executive bodies, the Independent National Electoral Commission, its powers to make its own rules or otherwise regulate its own procedure shall not be subject to the approval or control of the President.

To that extent, President Bola Tinubu cannot direct the INEC chairman to proceed on terminal leave,” Falana stated.