Ephraim Akpata
Ephraim Omorose Ibukun Akpata (15 Afrilu 1927 - 8 Janairu 2000) ya kasance mai shari'a na Kotun Koli ta Najeriya kuma shugaban hukumar zabe mai zaman kanta ta Najeriya (INEC) na farko, wanda ke da alhakin zaben 1998/1999 wanda ya sake dawo da dimokuradiyya. a watan Mayu 1999.

Fage 
An haifi Ephraim Akpata a shekarar 1927 a jihar Edo . Ya yi karatun King's College da ke Legas sannan ya karanci fannin shari'a. A cikin littafinsa na 888 Days in Biafra, Samuel Enadeghe Umweni ya tuna yadda sau biyu Lauya Akpata ya yi tafiya mai hatsarin gaske a fagen daga domin ziyarce shi a lokacin da sojojin Biafra suka balle a lokacin yakin basasar Najeriya (1967-1970).
Akpata became a justice of the Supreme court, retiring in 1993 at the age of 65. Akpata ya zama alkalin kotun koli, ya yi ritaya a shekarar 1993 yana da shekaru 65.  An nada shi shugabancin hukumar ta INEC a shekarar 1998 lokacin da gwamnatin Janar Abdulsalam Abubakar ta kafa hukumar zabe ta INEC domin shirya zaben rikon kwarya da ya kawo jamhuriya ta hudu ta Najeriya a ranar 29 ga watan Mayun 1999.

Samar da jam'iyyu 
Don kaucewa rarrabuwar kawuna ta kabilanci, Akpata ya tanadi cewa jam’iyyun da ke da babban goyon bayan kasa ne kadai za a ba su damar shiga zaben. Ya yanke hukuncin cewa dole ne jam’iyyun siyasa su lashe kujerun zabukan kananan hukumomi a akalla jihohi goma domin samun cancantar shiga zaben gwamna, da na majalisar jiha, da na ‘yan majalisun tarayya da na shugaban kasa. Daga cikin kungiyoyin siyasa 26, ya ba da rajista na wucin gadi a matsayin jam’iyyun siyasa a zabukan 1998/1999 zuwa tara kacal, inda a karshe jam’iyyu uku ne suka cancanci shiga zaben Jiha da na kasa.  Hakan ya haifar da kafa gamayyar kananan kungiyoyi, kamar kungiyar 34 da ta kafa sabuwar jam’iyyar PDP. 

Dole ne haɗin gwiwa ya zama jam'iyyu na gaske. A watan Janairun 1999 Akpata ya ce kawancen zaben da aka sanar tsakanin jam'iyyar Alliance for Democracy (AD) da All People's Party (APP) "ya bayyana ya sabawa dokokin INEC". Ya ce jam’iyyun biyu suna son su “ci gajiyar hadewar ba tare da an yi guda daya ba”.  Akpata ya soki tsarin da jam'iyyar PDP ta zabo 'yan takararta, yana mai cewa ta fadi "matsayin gaskiya da ake tsammani daga tsarin dimokuradiyya."

Zabe 
Hukumar INEC ta gudanar da zabuka daban-daban. An gudanar da zaben kananan hukumomin ne a watan Disambar 1998, inda PDP ta samu kashi 59%, APP 25.8% sai AD 13.2% na kujeru.  An gudanar da zaben gwamnoni a watan Janairun 1999, inda jam’iyyar PDP ta lashe jihohi 19 cikin 35, jam’iyyar APP ta lashe jihohi 9, ita kuma AD ta lashe jihohi 6. An gudanar da zaben cikin tsari da lumana, kuma Akpata ya ce an gudanar da sahihin zabe.  An gudanar da zaben ‘yan majalisar wakilai da na majalisar dattawa a watan Fabrairun 1999. A Majalisar Dattawa PDP ta samu kujeru 59, APP 29 da AD 20. A majalisar, PDP ta samu kujeru 206, APP 74 da AD 68. An dage zaben saboda dalilai na tsaro a jihohin Akwa Ibom, Delta, Nasarawa da Ribas. Akpata ya shaidawa taron manema labarai cewa duk da cewa an yi adalci, amma an samu wasu kura-kurai a zaben.  A zaben shugaban kasa da aka gudanar a ranar 27 ga Fabrairun 1999, jam’iyyun AD da APP sun tsayar da dan takara na hadin gwiwa, Cif Olu Falae, wanda ya sha kaye a hannun dan takarar PDP, tsohon Janar kuma shugaban mulkin soja Olusegun Obasanjo . Obasanjo ya samu kashi 63% na kuri'un da aka kada. 

Akpata ya karbi masu sa ido kan zaben kasashen waje daga Cibiyar Carter da ke Amurka da Cibiyar Dimokuradiyya ta Kasa, kuma ya goyi bayan bukatarsu ta horar da dubban masu sa ido na cikin gida. Rahotanni daga wadannan kungiyoyi kan zabukan da aka yi a baya sun yi kyau, duk da cewa sun yi nuni da cewa ba a samu fitowar jama'a ba da kuma wasu kura-kurai. Rahotanni kan zabukan da aka yi a baya sun kasance masu matukar muhimmanci, inda suka bayyana rashin bin ka’ida da suka hada da sake dawo da kuri’u, cushe akwatin zabe, da sauya sakamakon zabe, da kuma hana masu kada kuri’a hakkinsu. Bayan kammala zaben, tsohon shugaban kasar Amurka Jimmy Carter ya aike da wasika zuwa ga Akapata cewa, "An samu sabanin ra'ayi sosai tsakanin adadin masu kada kuri'a a rumfunan zabe da kuma sakamakon karshe da aka samu daga jihohi da dama. Don haka abin takaici, ba zai yiwu mu yi cikakken hukunci game da sakamakon zaben shugaban kasa ba.”  Daga baya Olu Falae ya yi zargin cewa an tabka magudi a zaben da aka yi a PDP. 

Mai shari’a Ephraim Akpata ya rasu ne a ranar 8 ga Janairun 2000 yana da shekaru 72.

Manazarta 

Haifaffun 1927