President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated four national commissioners and two resident electoral commissioners (RECs) for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to fill vacancies arising from the expiration of existing tenures.
The nominations were announced in a State House press release issued on Friday, October 16, 2026, by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.
According to the statement, the Senate will scrutinise all the nominees ahead of their confirmation.
President Tinubu has also reappointed Dr Bala Bila as the national commissioner representing the North-East geopolitical zone.
The newly nominated national commissioners include Professor Mustapha Aliu, who will replace Professor Abdullahi Zuru as the representative of the North-West, and Bashir Muhammed Umar, who will replace Professor Muhammad Adamu as the representative of the North-Central.
The President also nominated Mrs Oluwatoyin Babalola, the current Resident Electoral Commissioner in Osun State, as the new national commissioner representing the South-West. She is expected to replace Professor Cornelius Ajayi, whose tenure expires on October 24, 2026.
For the resident electoral commissioner positions, Tinubu nominated retired permanent secretary Dr Samuel Akinjide Akinleye to represent Ekiti State and Zahradden Basiru Sanusi from Jigawa State to replace Professor Saidu Ahmed Babura.
The President urged the Senate to expedite the confirmation process in view of the forthcoming General Elections scheduled for January 2027.
