I Have Put the Orubebe Behind Me - Prof Jega Speaks on Famous Outburst

Posted by Odinaka on Mon 03rd Aug, 2015 - tori.ng

Prof. Attahiru Jega, said he was satisfied with the apology offered by Elder Godsday Orubebe over his behaviour during collation of the results of the last presidential election.

Prof. Attaihiru Jega

Former INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, said he was satisfied with the apology offered by Elder Godsday Orubebe over his outburst during collation of last presidential election result, and that he had since forgotten about the matter.

Speaking with correspondents in Ilorin, Kwara State, over the weekend where he attended the 80th birthday ceremony of ex-National Commissioner of INEC, Dr. Abdulkadir Oniyangi, the ex INEC boss advised Nigerians to put Orubebe’s performance behind and move on in building on the gains of the last election which he said met the requirements of international best practices.

“I think the Orubebe’s incident is behind us, and we should just move on and not be held back by it. I was made to understand that a day or two after the incident, Mr. Orubebe made a public apology through the news media and I think that is sufficient enough.

"I think the challenges for us include ensuring that statesmen act as they should. And under all circumstances, we must control our emotions and resist the temptation of making wild allegations which can disrupt a process as important as the election. But I think we all learnt something from the elections,” he added.

The former INEC boss who has now returned to the classroom as a professor said he was delighted to be back. He stressed that the commission should continue to work on the voters’ register.