By Folorunso Alagbede, Abuja
The ground breaking ceremony of the new annex office of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in Zambezi crescent, Maitama, Abuja was on Tuesday performed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The event was witnessed by dignitaries including the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Barrister Nyesom Wike, Minister of State for FCT, Hajia Muhamud Mariya, Speaker, House of Representative, Dr Tajudeen Abass and Deputy Senate President, Senator Jubril Barau.
Others included; the Chief of Staff to the President, Hon Hakeem Gbajabiamila, INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, and INEC National Commissioners.
In his speech, the INEC Chairman, Prof Yakubu expressed gladness that the
President found time to personally perform the ground breaking ceremony of the INEC Annex Building to complement the current headquarters of the Commission.
“We are glad that the President found time to personally perform the ground breaking ceremony of the INEC Annex Building to complement the current headquarters of the Commission”, he said.
Yakubu disclosed that the main building opposite the present site shall remain the National Headquarters of the Commission.
He explained that when completed, the new building will complement the main building,adding “For me personally, this is a special occasion. After almost ten years of persistent effort, the construction of the INEC Annex Building is finally a reality”.
Speaking further, the INEC Chairman said, “For a long time, the Commission has been grappling with inadequate office accommodation. Our present national headquarters is severely congested. Commissioned in December 1997, it was originally planned to cater for eight Commission members (a Chairman and seven full-time National Commissioners), ten Departments/Directorates and 500 staff.
“Since then, the activities of the Commission have become more extensive and the staff strength at the headquarters has more than doubled. Today, there are 13 full-time Commission members (a Chairman and 12 National Commissioners), 22 Departments/Directorates and 1,048 staff.
“Consequently, every facility is overstretched from offices to meeting rooms for the Commission’s 15 standing Committees and other activities, including regular engagements with stakeholders. “General staff meetings always take place outside the Commission. In response, the Commission was compelled to rent two buildings in Wuse Zone II to ease the situation.
“Over the last ten years, we made every effort to alleviate the situation until sometime last year when the Ministry of the Federal Capital Territory came to the rescue.
“I wish to make it clear that this is not the first time that the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) is constructing an office for the Electoral Commission.
“When the Commission relocated its headquarters from Lagos to Abuja in 1991, it was the FCDA that provided it with offices in Garki to accommodate the national headquarters as well as the FCT office.
“When the facility became overstretched, the FCDA again built our present headquarters. The building in Garki now operates exclusively as our FCT Office.
“In fact, today’s (yesterday’s) ground breaking event is the third time in the last 34 years that the FCDA, in the discharge of its responsibilities, is stepping in to either provide office accommodation or alleviate the Commission’s space constraint”, the INEC Chairman stated.
