Nigeria: Electoral Commission Confident of Transparent Vote | VoA News

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) concluded its final meeting with all registered political parties Thursday ahead of the March 28 election. Nick Dazang, INEC’s deputy director for public affairs, told VOA, “We updated them about our preparations to conduct the 2015 general elections. We were able to explain to them the procedures and the guidelines for these elections. We were also able to explain to them the ballots and the colors of the ballots and the papers that would be used on Election Day.” Some political parties, including President Jonathan’s ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP), expressed concern about the use of the voter card reader machines the election body plans to use during the poll. The parties said at the meeting the machines should not be used, arguing that millions of prospective voters could be disenfranchised during the poll.

Nigeria: Protest rocks INEC over planned use of card readers | Nigerian Tribune

Protesting youths, under the umbrella of “Middle Belt Concerned Youths” on Wednesday, stormed the national headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja, protesting the use of permanent voter cards (PVCs) and the card readers for the elections. This was just as they also called on the Federal Government to sack the INEC chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega with immediate effect. However, the youth, who arrived the Maitama headquarters of INEC in hired luxury buses around 8.00 a.m. were prevented by armed policemen and other security agents, who cordoned the INEC office. The youths, armed with various placards, were received by an Assistant Director in charge of security, Victor Egbo, on behalf of the commission. He received their protest letter with a promise to deliver same to the commission’s chairman.

Nigeria: What other African elections tell us about Nigeria’s bet on biometrics | The Washington Post

Nigeria, sub-Saharan Africa’s largest economy and home to almost 180 million people, will hold elections on March 28, a six-week delay after its initial date. While international commentators focus debate on the Boko Haram crisis and the risk of electoral violence, another novelty in this 2015 election has gone relatively overlooked: the use of new biometric voting technology. Every Nigerian voter is supposed to receive a permanent voter card, which stores biometric information such as fingerprints and facial image. At the polls, the voters will present their cards and a voter card reader will verify their name on the voter roll and the authenticity of the card.

Nigeria: Opposition Parties Threaten to Boycott Elections | VoA News

Nigeria’s opposition political parties have threatened to boycott the March 28 presidential vote if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) continues with its plan to use voter card reader machines during the poll. INEC says the card reader machines are meant to help authenticate voters with permanent voter cards, before they are allowed to vote. But the parties argue that the machine is prone to malfunction, which they say will disenfranchise prospective voters and undermine the credibility of the election. Nick Dazang, INEC’s deputy director for public affairs, said officials of the electoral body are shocked at the stance of the opposition parties. He said the parties agreed about measures INEC implemented to address their concerns ahead of the election. He dismissed reports that the card readers are not efficient.

Nigeria: Electoral Body Reassures Public Over March Election | Reuters

Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reassured prospective voters that the elections now scheduled for March 28 will proceed as planned despite concerns the vote could be postponed again for security reasons. The general election, originally set for February 14, was postponed by the INEC, which cited security challenges in parts of the country’s north, where Boko Haram militants often attack civilians. Nick Dazang, INEC’s deputy director for public affairs, said the electoral body is using the postponement period to strengthen systems to ensure a transparent, credible, free and fair election. Dazang spoke after opposition groups including the All Progressives Congress led by retired General Muhammadu Buhari said they will not accept another “unconstitutional” postponement of the election.

Nigeria: As Boko Haram grows stronger, Nigeria prepares for vote | Toronto Star

They are still missing. #BringBackOurGirls was pleaded from the United Nations to the red carpet, from Michelle Obama to the Pope, but the Twitter activism and all the attention it garnered didn’t help. If anything, Boko Haram, the group that kidnapped and enslaved 276 young women in Nigeria 10 months ago, has only gotten stronger. Nigeria’s elections, originally scheduled for Feb. 14, were postponed until March 28, ostensibly to give President Goodluck Jonathan’s government time to improve security. But the delay was met with allegations of political interference, as Jonathan is in a tight race against opposition candidate Muhammadu Buhari, who is from the northeastern region where Boko Haram is strongest. Denying the inference, Jonathan vowed in a CNN interview that there would be “serious advancements” against the terrorist group. But how will six weeks help?

Nigeria: Electoral Commission Targets Vote Rigging | VoA News

A senior official of Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has refuted reports that the use of card readers to authenticate voters is unconstitutional. Both the 1999 constitution and the Electoral Act of 2010 stipulate that “electronic voting is prohibited for now.” Critics say those laws are also meant to cover the use of electronic readers to check voter registration cards. But Nick Dazang, INEC’s Deputy Director for Public Affairs said critics are misunderstanding the measures. “The card reader we are deploying for the elections is meant only for accrediting voters before they vote,” said Dazang. “Electronic voting means using a machine to vote. And in the instance of the card reader, the only thing it does is to accredit and authenticate the voter and then verify the voter as the genuine voter of the Permanent Voter Card [PVC] that we are using for the election.”

Nigeria: Vote delay prompts suspicion of election rigging, worries of violence | The Washington Post

It had been two days since Nigeria’s presidential election was postponed at the behest of the military, and Idayat Hassan’s phone was ringing nonstop. “It’s like a coup against democracy,” said the director of the Center for Democracy and Development to the ninth or 10th reporter of the day. “It’s like blackmail,” Hassan said when her phone rang again. “I’m very worried,” she said to a colleague, and now she hung up the phone, put her head in her hands and sighed. “After 16 years of democracy — this.” This: For weeks, Africa’s most populous nation appeared to be barreling toward its most fiercely competitive election since it returned to civilian rule in 1999, a race between President Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari, a former military dictator. Hassan and others were training poll watchers. Ballot boxes were being distributed across the country. And Nigerians, from elite professionals to street hawkers, were beginning to sense a startling possibility: An election could actually kick the ruling party out. Except that then it all came to a grinding stop.

Nigeria: Boko Haram threatens to disrupt Nigeria poll | Al Jazeera

Nigeria’s presidential election on March 28 will not take place peacefully, AbuBakr Shekau, leader of Boko Haram, has said in a new video purportedly released by the group. In the video, released on social media on Tuesday and obtained by US based SITE intelligence group, Shekau issued a warning to the Goodluck Jonathan’s government that next month’s elections would be disrupted with violence. “Allah will not leave you to proceed with these elections even after us, because you are saying that authority is from people to people, which means that people should rule each other, but Allah says that the authority is only to him, only his rule is the one which applies on this land,” he said. “And finally we say that these elections that you are planning to do, will not happen in peace, even if that costs us our lives.

Nigeria: What’s next for Nigeria’s democracy? | The Washington Post

The delay of Nigeria’s elections, originally scheduled for Feb. 14 and now set for March 28, did not exactly come as a surprise for Nigeria watchers. The Associated Press reported nearly 12 hours before the announcements that the elections would be pushed back six weeks, referencing an anonymous source. Princeton Lyman, in Foreign Policy, advocated for a delay of the elections due to the difficulties posed by the “nearly one million people displaced or controlled by Boko Haram.” Others, including National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki, noted that the low levels of voter ID card distribution would hamper the election’s credibility. In particular, the uneven distribution of voter ID cards among Nigeria’s states portended political violence in a country with a short history of democracy and a long history of inter-regional distrust. And yet, when Attahiru Jega, the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, arrived at the press conference to announce the delays, after a delay of more than five hours, voter ID distribution and IDPs were not on the agenda.

Nigeria: Nigerians Relocate to Avoid Possible Election Violence | VoA News

In northeast Nigeria, insurgent group Boko Haram group has distributed leaflets warning people to boycott the March 28 nationwide elections. But that is not the only threat to security, People are moving their families away from sites of possible tension around the country and are preparing for unrest once results are announced. From the Niger Delta to far northeast, the pre-election period has become a time of migration for some Nigerians. VOA met several on the streets of Kaduna. “My wife has been pestering me for the past three months,” said a man. “Even today, she called me to say ‘Are we ready to move to a safer ground?’” “Nobody wants to die for nothing. I myself, I am planning to relocate to the southern part of Kaduna where I will not be hearing sounds of war, drums of crisis, burning of tires and teargas, and all those kind of things,” said a woman.

Nigeria: Election Delay Brings Disappointment, Criticism | VoA News

There is mixed reaction to the six-week postponement of Nigeria’s presidential and parliamentary elections. The vote was delayed by the nation’s Independent National Electoral Commission, primarily because of security concerns in northeastern Nigeria. INEC Chairman Atthiru Jega announced the change a week ago, saying the elections would be held March 28. President Goodluck Jonathan appeared on television to express his disappointment about the postponement but noted that the war against Boko Haram in the northeast was intensifying. Adebowale Adefuye, Nigeria’s ambassador to the United States, said Wednesday on VOA’s “Straight Talk Africa” that he was confident the election would be aboveboard and honest.

Nigeria: An Election Postponed in Nigeria | The New Yorker

Nigeria’s electoral commission has delayed the Presidential election, which was to occur this Saturday, by six weeks in order for the military to launch an operation to secure the northeast from Boko Haram and guarantee the safety of voters in the region. President Goodluck Jonathan, whose government is undeniably corrupt and who could well lose the election to his challenger, the former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari, stands to benefit from the postponement. It’s true that people in the northeast would find it difficult to vote: more than a million and a half of them have fled their homes, while others are living under Boko Haram occupation or have been warned by the Islamist terrorists not to participate in the election. It’s also true that Boko Haram’s insurgency began almost six years ago. If the government can neutralize the group in just six weeks, what has taken so long?

Nigeria: Election delay raises red flags about military, electoral commission | Associated Press

The six-week delay in Nigeria’s presidential election has raised red flags both in the international community and among local political and civil rights groups, with many concerned about the independence of the country’s electoral commission and whether the military hierarchy had too much say in the matter. President Goodluck Jonathan and his chief rival, former military dictator Muhammadu Buhari, are facing off in what is probably the tightest presidential contest in the history of Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation and its economic powerhouse, so any change like moving back election day is seen as suspicious and a possible game-changer. Many international observers had already arrived in the country and foreign journalists were struggling to obtain visas when Nigeria’s electoral commission announced Saturday it was postponing the Feb. 14 presidential and legislative elections until March 28.

Nigeria: Nigeria confronts fallout of delayed election | Christian Science Monitor

The decision by Nigeria’s electoral commission to postpone the upcoming general election due to security concerns over the Boko Haram insurgency has brought the country closer to a political crisis. The Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) announced its decision Saturday based on the military’s assessment that it could not guarantee security at the polls amid newly announced military operations in Nigeria’s troubled northeastern states. The election were originally scheduled for this coming Saturday. Critics, however, say the delay is a political move by President Goodluck Jonathan, who is facing fierce competition from main opposition party candidate Muhammadu Buhari.

Nigeria: Democracy, Deferred: On Nigeria’s Dysfunctional Election | The Atlantic

Last week, Victor, a carpenter, came to my Lagos home to fix a broken chair. I asked him whom he preferred as Nigeria’s next president: the incumbent, Goodluck Jonathan, or his challenger, Muhammadu Buhari. “I don’t have a voter’s card, but if I did, I would vote for somebody I don’t like,” he said. “I don’t like Buhari. But Jonathan is not performing.” Victor sounded like many people I know: utterly unenthusiastic about the two major candidates in our upcoming election. Were Nigerians to vote on likeability alone, Jonathan would win. He is mild-mannered and genially unsophisticated, with a conventional sense of humor. Buhari has a severe, ascetic air about him, a rigid uprightness; it is easy to imagine him in 1984, leading a military government whose soldiers routinely beat up civil servants. Neither candidate is articulate. Jonathan is given to rambling; his unscripted speeches leave listeners vaguely confused. Buhari is thick-tongued, his words difficult to decipher. In public appearances, he seems uncomfortable not only with the melodrama of campaigning but also with the very idea of it. To be a democratic candidate is to implore and persuade, and his demeanor suggests a man who is not at ease with amiable consensus. Still, he is no stranger to campaigns. This is his third run as a presidential candidate; the last time, in 2011, he lost to Jonathan.

Nigeria: Authorities under fire over vote delay | AFP

Nigerian authorities came under fire on Sunday over the decision to postpone national elections in the face of relentless Boko Haram violence, with the opposition branding the move a “major setback for democracy”. Nigeria’s electoral commission announced over the weekend that the presidential and parliamentary polls would be postponed from February 14 to March 28. The announcement came after weeks of near-daily attacks by the insurgents in the north-east, which had threatened the safety of the vote. But some observers charged that the political woes of incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan — who faces a stiff challenge in his re-election bid against ex-military ruler Muhammadu Buhari — were the real reason for the delay.

Nigeria: Nigeria to postpone elections to fight Boko Haram | The Guardian

Nigeria’s electoral commission will postpone next Saturday’s presidential and legislative elections for six weeks to give a new multinational force time to secure north-eastern areas under the sway of Boko Haram, an official close to the commission told the Associated Press on Saturday. Millions could be disenfranchised if the voting went ahead while the Islamic extremists hold a large swath of the north-east and commit mayhem that has driven 1.5 million people from their homes. Civil rights groups opposed to any postponement started a small protest on Saturday. Police prevented them from entering the electoral commission headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital. Armed police began deploying to block roads leading to the building. The Nigerian official, who is knowledgeable of the discussions, said the Independent National Electoral Commission would announce the postponement later on Saturday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

Nigeria: Election postponement gets mixed reaction | BBC News

“Nigerians Shocked!” proclaimed one headline reporting that presidential elections due to take place next Saturday had been delayed for six weeks. It was certainly a topic for discussion as people headed to church on Sunday in Lagos, the country’s commercial capital and a city where the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) and its presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari has much support. The electoral commission said they were postponing elections by six weeks because troops needed to protect polling stations were occupied fighting Boko Haram militants. But reaction seems to have split along party lines, and many here saw the delay as a ploy to give the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) an opportunity to gain ground in the campaign. The news did not dampen electioneering, however, with APC youths chanting “change, change, change” as they headed for an afternoon rally in Ikoyi. Sweeping the road symbolically with brushes, they were vocal about their suspicions.

Nigeria: Boko Haram Massacres Civilians, Burns Down Mosque In Cameroon Days Before Nigeria Presidential Election | International Business Times

Members of the Nigerian Islamist militant group Boko Haram massacred civilians and burned a mosque in the Cameroonian town of Fotokol Wednesday, residents said. The assault came hours after neighboring Chad sent troops who allegedly killed more than 200 Boko Haram fighters in the Nigerian town of Gamboru, located just 500 yards from Fotokol. Boko Haram extremists who escaped the fighting in Gamboru crossed over to Fotokol, where they targeted civilians. The fighters slit the throats of several townspeople and torched Fotokol’s primary mosque, multiple accounts said. At least 10 people were killed in the attack, according to one report. “Boko Haram inflicted so much damage here this morning. They have killed dozens of people,” Fotokol resident Umar Babakalli told Agence France-Presse in a phone interview. “They burnt houses and killed civilians as well as soldiers,” a source familiar with local security forces said.

Nigeria: Election body insists no need for vote delay | AFP

Nigeria’s President Goodluck Jonathan held talks Thursday on postponing next week’s presidential election over mounting attacks by the radical Boko Haram group, but the election commission insisted on maintaining the date, a governor said. Jonathan held seven hours of talks with security officials, state governors, the election commission and former heads of state on whether to proceed with the vote in the face of growing bloodshed in the northeast, Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha told journalists. Among those attending the meeting of the Council of State was Jonathan’s main challenger in the election, General Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler, who led Nigeria between 1983 and 1985.

Nigeria: Presidential election postponed to March 28 | Reuters

Nigeria’s electoral commission has said it is postponing the Feb. 14 presidential election until March 28 due to security concerns, caving in to pressure from the ruling People’s Democratic Party in a move likely to enrage the opposition. Foreign powers are closely observing how elections will be held in Africa’s biggest economy and have voiced concerns over violence in the aftermath, as was the case after the 2011 election, when 800 people died. The postponement could stoke unrest in opposition strongholds such as the commercial capital, Lagos, and Nigeria’s second city, Kano, because the opposition has been staunchly against a delay. … “The commission cannot lightly wave off the advice of the nation’s security chiefs … The risk of deploying young men and women and calling people to exercise their democratic rights in a situation where their security cannot be guaranteed is a most onerous responsibility,” Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) chairman Attahiru Jega told reporters.

Nigeria: Election Commission may push back deadline for voter ID handout: INEC | AFP

Nigeria’s election body said Wednesday that it may push back the deadline for distributing voter identity cards but denied media reports that the vote itself could be postponed. The spokesman for Independent National Election Commission (INEC), Kayode Idowu, told AFP that the body may allow voter ID cards to be handed out after the current February 8 deadline. However he described media reports about a possible election postponement as “completely false”.

Nigeria: Continued Boko Haram insurgency prompts fears of Valentine’s Day massacre when country heads to polls | The Independent

Nigeria’s commercial hub is in the middle of election fever. The country heads to the polls on Valentine’s Day amid a Boko Haram insurgency wreaking havoc throughout the north-east. The security situation deteriorated further this week when a female suicide bomber blew herself up at a rally in Gombe, a city in the north-east, a few minutes after President Goodluck Jonathan had left. The presidential convoy was parked 200 metres from the explosion on Monday. One person was killed and 18 others were injured. At the same time, Nigerian soldiers and vigilante groups were trying to repel the Islamist militants’ advance on the northern city of Maiduguri. Boko Haram fighters initially tried to capture Maiduguri a week ago, but were resisted by Nigerian troops.

Nigeria: Elections in the Time of Boko Haram Violence, Displacement and Religious Tensions | International Business Times

As Nigeria prepares to go to the polls to elect its new president on 14 February, in what is seen as the first election contested by two rival parties, millions of Nigerians may not be able to cast their votes after all. A suicide bomb attack in a north-east Nigeria school killed at least 47 and injured 79 others as students had gathered for a morning assembly on Monday. Flaring Boko Haram violence in the northern states has left many towns ravaged, thousands dead and millions displaced. Over the last weekend, the group launched a heavy attack on Maiduguri, the biggest city in northeast Nigeria, as it seeks to build an Islamist state in the region. But it is not just the ruthless terror group that has posed a grave threat to the elections; the religious north-south divide, a seemingly ill-prepared election commission and plain logistics could be just as explosive.

Nigeria: Nigeria braces for more Boko Haram attacks in election buildup | AFP

Nigeria on Monday braced for fresh Boko Haram attacks ahead of this month’s elections, with the key city of Maiduguri in the firing line and forces from Chad and Cameroon joining the regional fight. A weekend of violence saw the Borno state capital, Maiduguri, hit for the second Sunday in a row, but Nigerian Army soldiers, helped by civilian vigilantes, managed to keep the militants at bay. The border town of Gamboru, on Borno’s eastern fringe, meanwhile was pounded by artillery fire and from the air by Chadian jets, as troops massed in Cameroon for a possible ground offensive. The increase in both militant and military activity reflects growing fears over the Islamists’ threat to regional security and crucial elections scheduled for February 14.

Nigeria: Boko Haram Violence, Ballot Chaos Threaten Vote | NBC

A relentless campaign of slaughter by Boko Haram militants coupled with widespread administrative chaos threatens to leave tens of millions of Nigerians unable to vote in the country’s looming general election. The February 14 ballot will be the first election in the young democracy’s history in which polls suggest a close race between two rival candidates. Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country, the continent’s largest economy, and a key regional ally for the U.S. But spiralling violence by the Islamist sect Boko Haram has forced upward of one million people to flee their homes and rendered a huge swath of the northeast almost uninhabitable. Compounding that, Nigeria’s top security official revealed earlier this month that half of the electorate — some 30 million people — had yet to receive their polling cards just three weeks before the ballot.

Nigeria: Opposition Rejects Any Election Delay | VoA News

Nigeria’s main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) party said its presidential candidate, former General Muhammadu Buhari, will not accept any attempt by the government to postpone the February 14 vote. APC National Public Secretary Lai Mohamed said the government of President Goodluck Jonathan, who is seeking re-election, has been canvassing media houses trying to influence editorial opinion in favor of a postponement. The ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has not directly come out in favor of postponement, but National Security Advisor Sambo Dasuki suggested last week that the elections should be delayed because not all voter cards had been distributed. The government has accused the opposition of politicizing the threat of the Islamic insurgency, Boko Haram.

Nigeria: Election Violence – Northern Group Reports Buhari to U.S. | allAfrica.com

A group of northern pro-democracy activists under the aegis of the Northern Coalition for Democracy and Justice (NCDJ), has reported the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress(APC), General Muhammadu Buhari, to the government of the United States of America (USA), asking it to facilitate his prosecution for his role in the post-election violence of 2011. The group, in a letter to the United States Secretary of States, Senator John Kerry, which was also copied to the US Ambassador to Nigeria, stated that the assistance of the US has become imperative in order to help Nigeria stem the tide of election violence in the 2015 election. In the letter dated January 25 and titled: ‘The role of General Muhammadu Buhari in the 2011 post-election violence in Nigeria,’ which was signed by Dr. Ibrahim Baba , Secretary Research and Documentation, Mr. Yunana Shubkau, Publicity Secretary and Umar Farouk, Secretary General, the NCDJ said it had dragged General Buhari to the International Criminal Court but needed the backing of the US to have Buhari repatriated to the court.

Nigeria: Election to Proceed on Schedule | VoA News

The spokesman for Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says the February 14 presidential and gubernatorial elections will proceed as originally planned. Some recent reports had said the vote could be postponed. Kayode Idowu said the electoral body had updated its plans to administer elections in areas where residents often come under attack from radical Islamist militant group, Boko Haram. “The commission is doing everything it has to do to be in a position to conduct elections on February 14 and February 28 this year,” said Idowu. A senior security adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan is reported to have suggested that the election be postponed because of security challenges in parts of the country.