75 bouquets for  Maurice Iwu

                                                 By: Andy Ezeani In the wake of the 2007 general elections and the strident criticism of the polls by opposition parties especially, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, who won the presidency, made a terse admission and conciliatory statement, that the polls through which he just got to office, were not perfect. That, ordinarily, was not an earth-shaking declaration, considering that no election ever claimed perfection. That statement did become a very convenient axe, however, waved furiously by all those who were ready to quote Yar’Adua. Interestingly, none of those who easily referenced Yar’Adua on this score, was willing, or fair enough, to acknowledge that the man never said that he did not win the election. Indeed, no other presidential candidate ever laid claim to being the winner of the 2027 presidential election, imperfect as it may have been. Enter Professor Maurice Iwu, then chairman of the Independent national Electoral Commission (INEC), at that critical juncture in history. Iwu never said the election he conducted was perfect. He did say something, however, which got opposition politicians raving. In the heat of the passion in those who felt worsted at the polls, Prof. Iwu declared, boldly and somewhat defiantly, that if the presidential election was conducted ten times over, in the prevailing political environment of Nigeria at that period, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would still win. More hell was let loose from the corner of critics, but that was, and still remains Prof. Maurice Iwu. He holds on tenaciously to his conviction and he hardly backs down. The passion of that moment did not allow many to appropriately understand the man’s argument. It took a while before many, including those who savaged him earlier, came around to appreciate Iwu’s thesis, which became a spring board for subsequent political development. In the first decade after democracy was restored in Nigeria in 1999, as the national political system, PDP was not just the ruling party, it was a behemoth of sorts. The gap between the party as the ruling party and all other parties combined, was unassailable. PDP was dominant in every other zone of the country, but one. That was what Prof. Iwu noted and pointed out that the opposition parties, contending individually, could only generate noise, but would never win, except they pulled together. PDP would always trump them, even if elections were held donkey times. The truth was evident, but as one of the critics asked, why should Iwu say it?   Prof. Iwu was appointed Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission in May 2005. He had served briefly as a National Commissioner in the Commission, before being appointed Honourable Chairman. Prior to joining INEC, Iwu had gained global renown as a scientist, in the area of pharmacognosy, with many global scientific laurels to his name. He had his early education at Christ the King School, Aba and St. Pius X College, Bodo, Ogoni, River state. He proceeded, subsequently, to the University of Bradford, Bradford, United Kingdom,where he was educated to PhD level. He was, at various times, a World Health Organization (WHO) visiting scholar to the Dyson Perrins Laboratory, University of Oxford (1908), Fulbright Scholar at Ohio State University, Columbus Ohio (1983), senior Research Scholar Award winner at the U.S. National Research Council, Washington DC (1993-1995), Vice President, Research and Development, Tom’s of Maine, as well as member of the board of directors, Axxon Biopharm Inc, USA. In 1999 he won the US National Research International Prize for Ethnobiology. He had part of his rich professional career at the Division of Experimental Therapeutics of the highly regarded Walter Rees Army Institute of Research, Washington D.C, where he was a Senior Research Associate. At the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, he was a professor of Pharmacognosy Not unexpectedly, Prof. Iwu brought a remarkable spirit of innovation to INEC. He not only elevated the place of technology in the electoral process, he totally overhauled the electoral systems management, leaving an abiding imprint at the election management body. Standing to the credit of Prof. Iwu’s tenure at INEC is the Electoral Institute, which he established. TEI as it is commonly known, has become the hub of research and documentation at INEC. He not only established the Institute, he presided over the acquisition of the exquisite building in central area of Abuja which houses the institute. His foresight in acquiring the structure when INEC under him, did that, speaks for him now. Iwu also introduced the use of National Youth Service Corps members in the electoral process, using the young citizens on national service to replace ad hoc staff from the open society, an arrangement that had become quite problematic, as politicians exploited the old order to push their supporters in as ad hoc staff. Under Iwu also, electronic registration of voters was introduced. He ushered in the era of Direct Data Capture, that for the first time captured finger prints of registered voters and added images to voter’s cards. INEC under him partnered with Chams to establish a voter’s card production facility in Abuja. The idea of a permanent voter’s card matured only after he left office. In his effort to foster a better relationship with political parties as stakeholders in the electoral process, Iwu promoted a common body of political parties, what came to be known as Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC). On the administrative level, Prof. Iwu as Chairman of INEC fought and won a free hand for INEC to appoint its secretary, who is the head of administration of the Commission. Until Iwu’s advent, the Federal Government used to second a senior permanent Secretary to function as Secretary of INEC. He found that awkward, knowing that such a secretary can only owe his or her allegiance to those who appointed them. Perhaps, by far, one of Iwu’s most impactful accomplishments for INEC, outside the knowledge of the general public, was the establishment of what is known as INEC Fund, a financial management arrangement that enabled the Commission to exercise