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A former Resident Electoral Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Mike Igini, on Monday said he once contemplated stepping away from Nigeria after three decades of public engagement.
Igini described his 10-year stint at the commission as a “waste” of his earlier efforts toward national reform.
He spoke on Channels Television’s Politics Today, amid the ongoing controversy surrounding the country’s electoral law.
Igini disclosed that over the past two years, he had informed associates of his decision to “say goodnight to Nigeria,” citing frustration with the struggle for a better nation.
However, he said persistent appeals from across the country prompted him to reconsider.
Drawing inspiration from the ancient Greek philosopher Pythagoras, Igini noted that after a period of isolation, he concluded that meaningful understanding and change require active engagement with society.
He said: “In the past two years, I have told folks that I had decided to say goodnight to Nigeria because after 30 years, the struggle for a better Nigeria, particularly having to be in the commission for 10 years, I consider all those 10 years as a waste of my previous time.
“But I decided, based on so many calls across the country, and when I recall Pythagoras, when he was fed up as I have been for a while now, I went into isolation and subsequently, at some point, realized that the best way to study human beings is to come back and live with them.”
Electoral reforms: I’ve decided to say good night to Nigeria, wasted 10 years in INEC – Mike Igini
