Why I didn’t collect INEC’s Certificate of Return – Gbajabiamila

March 14, (THEWILL) – The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has explained his absence at last Wednesday’s event, where the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), issued Certificate of Return to members-elect of the House of Representatives in the February 25 elections.

While some media (not THEWILL) reports had said the Speaker is being positioned as Chief of Staff to the president-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu,  but addressing State House correspondents on Monday, after a meeting of the National Working Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) with the party’s lawmakers-elect, Gbajabiamila said he missed the event because he was in Lagos campaigning for the APC.

“I don’t know anything about that chief of staff thing. All I heard was that I didn’t come here last week to pick up my certificate of return and for that reason, somebody conjectured that I must be in line for the office because I didn’t care about my mandate.

“I was in Lagos and I could not leave Lagos because I was campaigning for my party. That’s number one. Again, it will interest you to know that I was not here four years ago to pick up my certificate of return from INEC because I couldn’t make it. I don’t think it is anything significant. I’ll pick up my certificate today or tomorrow”, he said.