‘I Regret 10 Years in INEC’ — Former REC Mike Igini Reveals the High Stakes of Nigeria’s Elections

Former Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mike Igini, has expressed deep regret over his ten years of service with the electoral body, citing systemic challenges and personal dangers he faced in trying to uphold the integrity of Nigeria’s elections.

Reflecting on his time at INEC, Igini said his efforts to reform the electoral process and protect the credibility of the ballot were often met with resistance and life-threatening risks.

“I spent over 30 years of my life, including 10 practical years in INEC, working to remove the history of our elections from frustration and pain, to give meaning and purpose to the ballot as the best way of expressing the will of the people in a democracy,” Igini said.

He added, “To now find out that all that we did was in vain, that’s why I regret that I wasted my 10 years in service of the fatherland. I could have been a dead man pursuing this cause. My colleague in Kano was killed because we wanted to do the right thing for Nigeria — his entire family wiped out.”

Igini revealed that officials striving to conduct elections transparently were often exposed to serious threats, including assassination. According to him, those committed to fairness frequently became targets due to powerful interests opposed to free and credible elections.

He also voiced concerns about proposed changes to the Electoral Act, warning that such amendments could further endanger presiding officers at polling units, who are already vulnerable while enforcing the law.

Criticising what he described as deep hypocrisy within Nigeria’s political and electoral environment, Igini said many public figures speak about democracy but act against it as elections approach. He stressed that protecting the ballot must remain a national priority, adding that democracy can only succeed when the votes of citizens are respected and not manipulated.