« We need to protect our votes we heard often during the campaign. In previous presidential elections, it was necessary to wait several days following the vote for the official announcement of the results. This time, the President of the Electoral Commission promised that the results would be announced “quickly”, but he did not specify the deadline, citing the possibility that this deadline might be counted in days. Counting the votes in Africa’s most populous country takes time: more than 93 million voters were called to the polls yesterday, a poll that continues in some polling stations this Sunday.
Remember that to be elected, the future president of the Nigerian federal state will have to obtain an absolute majority. But also more than 25% of the votes cast in at least two-thirds of the states in the country, therefore 24 out of 36. Otherwise, the Constitution provides for a second round between the two candidates with the best scores. Scenario that has never happened since the return of civilians to power in 1999.
Labor calls for annulment of ballot
Faced with the incidents (delays, violence, etc.) that are beginning to rise, certain executives of Peter Obi’s Labor Party demanded at midday the outright cancellation of the poll in Lagos. We will have to wait to know a little more, but according to them, the delay in posting the results by the Electoral Commission undermines the credibility of the electoral process. They denounce, for example, manipulations in the State of Rivers where gangs of young people have invaded certain polling stations and downloaded false results. A communicator from the Nigerian presidency found this request hilarious, in a message he just posted on Twitter.
The Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, had nevertheless praised the determination of the Nigerians yesterday and the friendly atmosphere in which this vote took place, but things changed this Sunday in the light of information coming from the field. A police spokesperson in Lagos, for example, reacted by denouncing what might be seen in a viral video, which showed the manager of the Lagos parks committee actively intimidating voters who did not support the party. majority. This man, nicknamed MC Oluomo, is a loyal supporter of Bola Tinubu, the candidate of the APC, the majority party. And the police have confirmed that these threats and pressures might be prosecuted if the video is authenticated.
Finally, this Sunday there was a brief reaction from Burna Boy, the afrobeat music superstar, who posted a very short message on his Instagram account asking INEC [Commission électorale nationale indépendante, NDLR] of ” let the Nigerians decide and not do magic tricks with the results “. The minimum service therefore. But yesterday, many Nigerians were on social media criticizing the silence of their country’s music stars, who mostly avoid getting involved in politics.
The President of the Electoral Commission announced that the first figures will be announced at the end of the followingnoon.
