Nigerians surprised at decision to postpone presidential election

The Africa’s giant has stumbled towards a pivotal moment in its history: an election so close that, for once, the incumbent wasn’t guaranteed a win the ballot box. It was the clearest sign yet of democracy taking root in Nigeria, a country which ostensibly shed military rule a decade and a half ago.

That moment has been, temporarily at least, halted in its tracks by a letter which the top electoral commissioner received early last week. 

Signed by the national security adviser, the letter warned that the security of electoral agents “could not be guaranteed” if presidential polls went ahead as slated on 14 February. A further six weeks were needed to conduct operations designed to flush out Boko Haram from four north-eastern states where the militant group has waged a bloody six-year campaign, it said.The warning came as the ruling People’s Democratic Party, which has been in power since military rule ended in 1999, has taken a battering in popularity rulings amid tumbling global oil prices, corruption scandals and an insurgency by Islamists Boko Haram which left some 10,000 dead last year alone.

After days of closed-door meetings, the electoral body wavered in the face of pressure from the ruling party to delay and pressure from its main rivals not to, came the announcement.

Attahiru Jega, chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (Inec) told reporters at midnight on Saturday: “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,” as he announced the presidential would now hold on 28 MARCH.

“I don’t think it’s a good enough reason to postpone,” said Idayat Hassan, a director at the Abuja-based Centre for Democracy and Development. “It would have been welcome if it came directly from Inec, if they felt they weren’t prepared. But this is an insurgency that has been going on for close to five years so what fundamental difference can be made in six weeks?”