Nigeria Postpones Elections, Saying Security Is a Concern
Nigeria Postpones Elections, Saying Security Is a Concern
The New York Times, 07 Feb 2015
URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/08/world/africa/nigeria-postpones-elections-citing-security-concerns.html?ref=africa&_r=0
By ADAM NOSSITER
DAKAR, Senegal — Nigeria’s election agency on Saturday night put off a closely contested presidential election after weeks of pressure to postpone it from the ruling party, which analysts say was facing potential defeat for the first time in more than 15 years.
The move is sure to anger the opposition, which has been arguing against a postponement, and inflame its supporters in a volatile electoral environment.
The election, originally scheduled for next Saturday, will now be held March 28, the election agency head told a news conference in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, late Saturday night. The elections official, Attahiru Jega, after days of what were reportedly heated meetings with the government, cited “security” concerns for the delay. He said that Nigeria’s top military men — themselves close to the government — refused to ensure that security would be “guaranteed” if the vote went ahead as scheduled.
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The country’s northeast has been in the grip of an Islamist insurgency waged by the Boko Haram terrorist group for nearly six years, with the country’s military unable to contain it. It was not immediately clear how that standoff might change in the coming six weeks.
But days ago the national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, who is close to President Goodluck Jonathan, made it equally clear that he favored putting off the vote.
Darren Kew, a Nigeria expert at the University of Massachusetts Boston, said: “This is a sign of panic on the part of supporters of the president and the ruling party. The real reason behind it is the opposition is surging right now.”
Mr. Jega, the elections official, was presented with a “fait accompli” by the country’s generals, Mr. Kew said, when security for the election was “withdrawn,” adding that “most of the upper brass is very close to the presidency.”
In a statement, the opposition All Progressives’ Congress said that this is clearly a major setback for Nigerian democracy.
Mr. Jonathan, a Christian from the south, has faced sharp criticism for his failure to contain Boko Haram, for a series of large-scale corruption scandals involving the government and for a faltering economy battered by the falling price of oil.
He is running against a general who ruled the country as a military dictator in the early 1980s. The general, Muhammadu Buhari, a Muslim from the north, has promised to crush Boko Haram and bring corruption to heel: a campaign pledge previously enacted by him with brutal rigor in his previous stint as head of government 30 years ago.
In a country evenly divided between Muslims and Christians, the general is thought to have an electoral lock on the Muslim north, and solid chances in the mixed-religion middle and southwest. Mr. Jonathan is only sure of support in his native far south. But now, with an additional six weeks of campaigning and unlimited cash, his chances have sharply improved, analysts believe.
But electoral violence and pressure from the streets — an ever-present factor in a country where 2011 was considered a peaceful election, although nearly 900 were killed after Mr. Buhari was defeated — will almost certainly now figure in as well, analysts said.
Secretary of State John Kerry issued a statement on Saturday saying that the United States was disappointed by the decision to postpone the election in Nigeria. “Political interference with the Independent National Electoral Commission is unacceptable,” he said, “And it is critical that the government not use security concerns as a pretext for impeding the democratic process.”
DAKAR, Senegal — Nigeria’s election agency on Saturday night put off a closely contested presidential election after weeks of pressure to postpone it from the ruling party, which analysts say was facing potential defeat for the first time in more than 15 years.
The move is sure to anger the opposition, which has been arguing against a postponement, and inflame its supporters in a volatile electoral environment.
The election, originally scheduled for next Saturday, will now be held March 28, the election agency head told a news conference in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, late Saturday night. The elections official, Attahiru Jega, after days of what were reportedly heated meetings with the government, cited “security” concerns for the delay. He said that Nigeria’s top military men — themselves close to the government — refused to ensure that security would be “guaranteed” if the vote went ahead as scheduled.
Continue reading the main story
RELATED COVERAGE
Boko Haram Widens Fight, Striking Niger FEB. 6, 2015
Nigerian soldiers in Maiduguri. Boko Haram militants have been attacking the city and terrorizing civilians in the towns around it.Boko Haram, and Massacres Ruled by WhimFEB. 5, 2015
Chad Retakes Nigerian Town From Militant Group Boko HaramFEB. 4, 2015
The country’s northeast has been in the grip of an Islamist insurgency waged by the Boko Haram terrorist group for nearly six years, with the country’s military unable to contain it. It was not immediately clear how that standoff might change in the coming six weeks.
But days ago the national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, who is close to President Goodluck Jonathan, made it equally clear that he favored putting off the vote.
Darren Kew, a Nigeria expert at the University of Massachusetts Boston, said: “This is a sign of panic on the part of supporters of the president and the ruling party. The real reason behind it is the opposition is surging right now.”
Mr. Jega, the elections official, was presented with a “fait accompli” by the country’s generals, Mr. Kew said, when security for the election was “withdrawn,” adding that “most of the upper brass is very close to the presidency.”
In a statement, the opposition All Progressives’ Congress said that this is clearly a major setback for Nigerian democracy.
Mr. Jonathan, a Christian from the south, has faced sharp criticism for his failure to contain Boko Haram, for a series of large-scale corruption scandals involving the government and for a faltering economy battered by the falling price of oil.
He is running against a general who ruled the country as a military dictator in the early 1980s. The general, Muhammadu Buhari, a Muslim from the north, has promised to crush Boko Haram and bring corruption to heel: a campaign pledge previously enacted by him with brutal rigor in his previous stint as head of government 30 years ago.
In a country evenly divided between Muslims and Christians, the general is thought to have an electoral lock on the Muslim north, and solid chances in the mixed-religion middle and southwest. Mr. Jonathan is only sure of support in his native far south. But now, with an additional six weeks of campaigning and unlimited cash, his chances have sharply improved, analysts believe.
But electoral violence and pressure from the streets — an ever-present factor in a country where 2011 was considered a peaceful election, although nearly 900 were killed after Mr. Buhari was defeated — will almost certainly now figure in as well, analysts said.
Secretary of State John Kerry issued a statement on Saturday saying that the United States was disappointed by the decision to postpone the election in Nigeria. “Political interference with the Independent National Electoral Commission is unacceptable,” he said, “And it is critical that the government not use security concerns as a pretext for impeding the democratic process.”