Mahmood Yakubu (born 1962) is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

academic who has served as the chairman of

Independent National Electoral Commission Independent National Electoral Commission may refer to: *Independent National Electoral Commission (Burundi) *Independent National Electoral Commission (Democratic Republic of the Congo) *Independent National Electoral Commission (Guinea) The Inde ...

(INEC) since 2015. He was appointed to office by President

Muhammadu Buhari Muhammadu Buhari (born 17 December 1942) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2015 to 2023. A retired Nigerian army major general, he was the military head of state of Nigeria from 31 December 1983 to 27 Augu ...

on 21 October 2015, succeeding acting chairman, Amina Zakari.

Early life and education

Yakubu was born in

Bauchi State Bauchi (Fula: ''Leydi Bauchi'' 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤦𞤢𞤵𞤷𞥅𞤭) is a States of Nigeria, state in the North East (Nigeria), North-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It is bordered by Jigawa State, Jigawa to the north, Yobe State, Y ...

, Nigeria. He completed his primary and secondary school education at Kobi Primary School and Government Teachers College, Toro, respectively. He proceeded to the University of Sokoto (now Usmanu Danfodiyo University), where he obtained a

first-class degree The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading structure used for undergraduate degrees or bachelor's degrees and integrated master's degrees in the United Kingdom. The system has been applied, sometimes with significant var ...

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

. He had his master's degree in international relations in 1987 from

Wolfson College, Cambridge Wolfson College () is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The majority of students at the college are postgraduates. The college also admits "mature" undergraduates (aged 21 and above), with around ...

, and doctorate degree in Nigerian history from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

in 1991. He was offered scholarship by the Bauchi State Government to study at the universities of

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

and

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

. Yakubu was the recipient of the Overseas Research Scholarship, and he also won the Commonwealth Scholarship from the Association of Commonwealth Universities.

Career

Yakubu is a lecturer and professor of

political history Political history is the narrative and survey of political events, ideas, movements, organs of government, voters, parties and leaders. It is closely related to other fields of history, including diplomatic history, constitutional history, soci ...

and International Studies at the

Nigerian Defence Academy The Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) is a military university based in Kaduna, Nigeria, that trains officer cadets for commissioning into one of the three services of the Nigerian Armed Forces: the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force. The duration ...

. Prior to his appointment as Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood was appointed as the executive secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund in 2007 by President

Umaru Musa Yar'Adua Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (; 16 August 19515 May 2010) was a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2007 until his death in May 2010. He won the Nigerian presidential election held on 21 April 2007, and was sworn in on 29 M ...

. Yakubu also served as Assistant Secretary of Finance and Administration at the 2014 National Conference.

Works

''Crisis and conflict management in Nigeria since 1980''
(2005).

''Western Education in Northern Nigeria: Challenges and Strategies''
(1996). National Gamji Memorial Club
''Emirs and politicians: reform, reaction and recrimination in Northern Nigeria, 1950-1966''
(2006). Baraka

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yakubu, Mahmood 1962 births Members of the Independent National Electoral Commission Living people People from Bauchi State Usmanu Danfodiyo University alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford Cambridge Commonwealth Trust Scholars Alumni of Wolfson College, Cambridge Nigerian Defence Academy people