A National Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commissioner, Amina Zakari, breaks silent on allegations leveled against her by the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

The PDP, the Inter-Party Advisory Council and several political parties had variously called on INEC to annul the appointment of Zakari as the chairperson of the Committee on National Collation Centre.

Zakari is believed to be a relation to the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress APC, President Muhammadu Buhari.

In an interview with the BBC, however, Zakari, who was a former acting Chairman of INEC, said she had also served as a special adviser to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo.

She further stated that she was appointed by former President Goodluck Jonathan as an INEC commissioner and that she had done her job diligently in the last eight years.

Zakari added, “I’m not his niece, I am not his cousin; and, on this job, I was appointed since 2010 by President Jonathan and prior to that, I was appointed as SA to President Obasanjo and I have done my work conscientiously over the years as a patriotic citizen of Nigeria.

“I don’t think I should be distracted now that elections are coming. I will continue doing my work, I will continue to serve my country to the best of my ability, with the best of intentions.

“President Muhammadu Buhari is my president as everybody else’s president.

“He is not my cousin, he is not my uncle as is being claimed; but I know him as my leader and the leader of the nation.”

He isn’t my cousin or uncle, but I know him as my leader —Amina Zakari says of Buhari