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Nigerian president Tinubu under pressure to avoid war with northern neighbor Niger

By Camille Malpat with Aminu Abubakar in Kano, Nigeria: Political leaders in Nigeria are urging President Bola Tinubu to reconsider a threatened military intervention against junta leaders in neighbouring Niger, ahead of a Sunday deadline to reinstate the country's...

Nigeria grapples with end of fuel subsidy

By Alexandre Martins Lopes: Nigerians are struggling with surging fuel prices after newly elected President Bola Tinubu declared an end to popular subsidies, a move analysts and experts said was long overdue. On his first day in office, Tinubu kept to his campaign...

Nigeria: Bandits raid six villages in north, kill 30 civilians

Armed men killed 30 people in weekend raids on six villages in Nigeria's north, a region regularly hit by criminal violence and clashes between communities, local police have said. The bloodshed is the latest outbreak of inter-communal violence which the country's...

Nigeria: ISWAP ambushes army unit, kills several soldiers

Several Nigerian soldiers died in an attack on a military convoy in the Lake Chad region by jihadist fighters aligned with the Islamic State group, security forces said Tuesday. The convoy was hit by militants from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP)...

Nigeria: Cash-strapped Boko Haram kidnaps herders for ransom

Boko Haram jihadists have kidnapped 30 ethnic Fulani herders near northeast Nigeria's Lake Chad, demanding ransom for their release, fishermen and the head of an anti-jihadist militia told AFP Tuesday. The militants in eight boats stormed the fishing and herding...

Nigeria: Edo residents brave Covid-19 to vote for governor

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Posted On 19 September 2020

Nigerians in the southern state of Edo braved the coronavirus and voted Saturday to elect a new governor in the country’s first poll since the start of the pandemic. The vote was held as Nigeria struggled to contain the spread of the virus which has so far infected some 57,000 people and claimed almost 1,100 lives. More than 1.7 million voters in Edo were expected to elect a new governor amid heavy security, with police officers and soldiers screening vehicles on major roads.

Voting began in most polling stations around 9:30 am (0830 GMT), one hour behind schedule due to late arrival of election personnel and materials. The majority of stations closed at 3:00 pm, but registered voters still waiting some centres were allowed to cast their ballots. “I am happy that people are here with their face masks but physical distancing is completely ignored,” nurse Florence Okonzua, 28 and a mother of two, said in Benin City, the state capital. She worried that the way voters milled together could help spread the virus. At another polling centre, a woman distributed free face masks.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, held general elections last year, but there was no governorship poll in Edo. Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said adequate arrangements were in place for the election. “Everything is set. We have deployed personnel and materials for a smooth and hitch-free poll,” Timidi Wariowei, state INEC spokesman, told AFP. Final results are expected on Sunday.

Although 17 political parties have fielded candidates for the vote, it is a two-way race between President Muhammadu Buhari’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP). Incumbent governor Godwin Obaseki of the PDP ran against APC standard-bearer Osagie Ize-Iyamu. Obaseki was elected on APC’s platform in 2016 but defected to the PDP after being denied the ticket owing to intra-party squabbles. Local media reported pockets of violence in some districts, but police said no-one had been hurt.

By Joel Olatunde Agoi, AFP

Nigerian army drone hits village in Kaduna State, kills civilians

By Aminu Abubakar with Laurie Churchman in Abuja: An army drone strike accidentally hit a village in northwestern Nigeria killing dozens of civilians celebrating a Muslim festival, local authorities, the military and residents said on Monday. Nigeria's armed forces...

Nigeria’s election runner-up, Atiku Abubakar, files appeal over election challenge

The runner-up in Nigeria's presidential election in February on Tuesday filed an appeal to the Supreme Court to overturn a ruling rejecting a challenge to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's election victory. Opposition parties had claimed various irregularities, from...