Nigerian president orders troops to be ‘ruthless’ with vote-riggers
Boko Haram kills two soldiers in North East
ABUJA: Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari said yesterday he had ordered the police and military to be “ruthless” with vote-riggers, as preparations were made for rescheduled elections. Presidential and parliamentary elections were put off just over five hours before polls were due to open on Saturday, causing widespread anger. New polls have been rescheduled for this Saturday, while governorship and state assembly elections have been pushed back to March 9.
At an emergency meeting of his ruling All Progressives Congress party (APC) in Abuja, Buhari said he intended to make sure the rescheduled ballot proceeds without a hitch. “I do not expect anybody to make any disturbance,” he told senior party members. “Anybody who decides to snatch (ballot) boxes or use thugs to disturb it (the vote), maybe this will be the last unlawful action he will take.”
Buhari, 76, said he had ordered “the military and the police to be ruthless” to ensure all Nigerians can vote for their chosen candidate. “I am going to warn anybody who thinks he has enough influence in his locality to lead a body of thugs or snatch (ballot) boxes or to disturb the voting system, he will do it at the expense of his life,” the president added. Both the APC and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have been accused of wanting to rig the result, notably by buying biometric voter identity cards.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) blamed the last-minute delay on logistical difficulties in the distribution of election materials, as well as sabotage. Elections have been delayed before in Nigeria: in 2015, there was a six-week postponement on security grounds linked to the Boko Haram conflict in northeast Nigeria. In 2011, the election was halted after it had already begun due to problems with the non-delivery of ballot papers, results sheets, and other voting materials. This year’s election is the sixth in the 20 years since Nigeria returned to civilian rule after decades of military government. Some 84 million voters are registered.
Boko Haram kills two
In another development, two Nigerian soldiers were killed and six others injured when Boko Haram jihadists attacked a military post near the Cameroon border, security sources told AFP yesterday, days before rescheduled presidental elections. Fighters loyal to long-time factional leader Abubakar Shekau launched the attack on Sunday evening some 15 kilometers (nearly 10 miles) from the town of Banki.
President Buhari came to power on a pledge to defeat the Islamist militants but despite his repeated claims that they have been weakened to the point of defeat, attacks persist. His failure to end the violence is again a polling issue as Buhari seeks re-election this weekend. “We lost two soldiers to Boko Haram terrorists who attacked Alpha Company location...” a military officer in Banki said on condition of anonymity.
“Six soldiers were also injured in the attack,” he said. The account was backed by a civilian militia member in the town. The injured troops were evacuated to a hospital in Mora, across the border in Cameroon. Banki is 130 kilometers southeast of Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, and houses some 45,000 people displaced by the
INEC blames delay on logistical
difficulties and sabotage
conflict in a sprawling camp. Boko Haram has launched several attacks in and around Banki, targeting troops and the displaced. Last month two soldiers were killed and seven civilians injured in an ambush on a convoy of traders under military escort in Chachile village.
Boko Haram has in recent months stepped up attacks against military targets which have been blamed on or claimed by IS-affiliated Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). On Saturday, four soldiers and five jihadist fighters were killed when ISWAP fighters attacked a base in the town of Buni Yadi, in nearby Yobe state, the military said. Five civilians were killed and 11 injured in the crossfire. The conflict, which began in 2009, has killed more than 27,000 people and left 1.8 million homeless in northeast Nigeria. The violence has spilled into neighboring Niger, Chad and Cameroon. —Agencies