Nigeria Mimics America

Legitimacy of Nigeria's Election Questioned

In Nigeria, two leading opposition candidates and election monitors are challenging the legitimacy of Saturday's election to replace outgoing Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo. The Transition Monitoring Group said that no election was held at all in parts of Nigeria. There were also many reports of ballot-box stuffing and polls opening late. The group called for the election results to be cancelled. Opposition candidates said the vote was rigged to elect Umaru Yar'adua, who Obasanjo had picked to be his successor. This is election monitor Pierre-Richard Prosper of the U.S.-funded International Republican Institute.

Pierre-Richard Prosper: "The system, as designed, did not work. You can look at some of the issues, irregularities that some of you witnessed on your own, some of which were articulated today. You can see that there were many people that were denied the opportunity to vote."

Nigeria's Electoral Commission claimed the election went smoothly despite some problems.


Source: Democracy Now, April 23, 2007