Opposition leaders in Nigeria have disputed the results of an election that placed Bola Ahmed Tinubu into the presidency, following an early-morning announcement of the final results by Mahmood Yakubu of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) party candidate supported by outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari, secured the victory with 37% of the votes cast. Buhari welcomed the news and said he would work closely with the president-elect to ensure an orderly handover of power.
Atiku Abubakar of the popular Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who was endorsed by five of Nigeria’s 18 political parties, received 29% of the vote while 25% went to Labour Party’s Peter Obi.
But by the time INEC presented the results, the opposition candidates had already stopped participating in the count and registered their disapproval of a process they say lacked transparency. Obi’s running mate, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, maintained that his party won and would yet claim their victory.
“It is our position that the purported result did not meet the minimum criteria of a transparent, free and fair election. In addition to the most condemnable attacks, violence, voter intimidation and suppression, the election was conducted in clear violation of agreed and promised INEC rules and guidelines, the Electoral Act 2002 as amended, and indeed the Nigerian Constitution,” he said during Wednesday’s press conference.
Abubakar also rejected the outcome of what he called a sham election and said he plans a court challenge.
Image: Bola Ahmed Tinubu