Breaking: Lauretta Onochie testifies before a Senate panel and declares that she is no longer a partisan.

Lauretta Onochie was appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari as an INEC commissioner in October 2020. Her appointment triggered outrage among Nigerians as many described it as unconstitutional. She has now said she is not partisan and that she is out of politics.

Lauretta Onochie, the Special Assistant to the President on Social Media, has stated that she is not partisan. That is, until now.

Ms. Onochie, who has stated that she is no longer involved in politics, refers to herself as “Madam Due Process.”

On Thursday, she told the Senate Committee on INEC that she was being vetted for the role of national commissioner for the election umpire.

Read also: The EFCC has arrested a man for allegedly committing a N2.7 million fraud

Ms Onochie was chosen as an INEC commissioner to represent Delta State by President Muhammadu Buhari in October 2020 – an appointment that sparked controversy among Nigerians, with many calling it unlawful.

In a letter to the Senate, the president asked for their approval.

Many people have petitioned the president to withdraw Ms Onochie’s candidacy, claiming that she is politicized and that appointing her to such a position would be undemocratic.

Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism and YIAGA Africa are among the civic organisations that have signed a petition to the Senate protesting Ms Onochie’s appointment.

The PDP has also expressed its displeasure with the move.

This study details how her nomination breaches Section 14(2a) of the 1999 Constitution’s Third Schedule, which specifies that “a member of the commission shall be non-partisan and a person of undoubted integrity.”