Despite concerns of widespread insecurity, including attacks on election officials, the head of Nigeria’s electoral commission, Mahmoud Yakubu, announced that the country’s upcoming presidential election will not be postponed.
Yakubu, who was speaking at a think tank in London, stated that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is well prepared to conduct the vote, which is scheduled for February 25, in Africa’s most populous nation.
“The commission is not contemplating, let alone planning, to postpone the 2023 general election,” he said. “We are going ahead to conduct the election as scheduled.”
The election is significant as it will determine the country’s next president, as the current President, Muhammadu Buhari, is term-limited.
Nigeria, with a population of 200 million and the largest economy in Africa, is facing unprecedented insecurity, including attacks on INEC’s own offices.
However, Yakubu assured that the commission will ensure voting in camps for Nigeria’s internally displaced people and that all biometric voter identification machines have been tested and are ready for use.