The fate of a hundred Deputy Directors of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is now hanging in the balance following the commission’s messed-up promotion exercise.

Investigations by News Express showed that the Deputy Directors who wrote the promotion examination over a year ago came from 32 out of Nigeria’s 36 states. The breakdown is as follows:

Abia 9; Akwa Ibom 4; Anambra 4; Bauchi 1; Bayelsa 1; Benue 5; Borno 10; Delta 2; Edo 3; Ekiti 2; Enugu 11; Gombe 2; Jigawa 3; Imo 10; Kaduna 5; Kano 4; Katsina 8; Kebbi 3, Kogi 3; Kwara 4; Lagos 7; Nasarawa 2; Niger 6; Ogun 5; Ondo 3; Osun 2; Oyo 1; Plateau 5; Sokoto 3; Taraba 2; Yobe 4, Zamfara 5.

The rest of the states had no qualified candidates for the examination.

News Express learnt that some of those who wrote the examination and were later subjected to oral interviews are close to retirement and that some of them have not been promoted for upwards of nine years. Already, the Bayelsa candidate has retired without realising his dream of being promoted.

This has led to apprehension and low morale among the affected officers, who have not been told what offence they committed that has made INEC to deny them of promotion.

As reported on July 26 by News Express, the examination was held in various states of the country in May last year and the next month at the INEC headquarters. However, no Deputy Director has been promoted while selected officers from Grade Level 13 to 15 were recently promoted to douse the tension generated by the bungled exercise.

“This has led to widespread disenchantment among staff,” a worried INEC staffer told News Express. “We do not know what offence we have committed so as to be left out after writing the exams and undergoing the oral interviews.”

Kayode Idowu, Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, refused to comment despite several efforts made by News Express over a period of almost two weeks to get his reaction, including speaking with him on phone besides e-mail and text messages sent to him over the issue.

•Photo shows INEC Chairman, Prof. Jega.

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