Connect with us

Politics

Nigeria: Low turn-out, violence mark governorship elections but ECOWAS observers disagree

Published

on

In Nigeria, the 2023 gubernatorial elections were on Saturday held in 31 states out of Nigerian 36 sub-national units called states. The election included choosing legislatures for the state assembly.

There were reports of low voter turnout nationwide and high levels of voter impression and intimidation in the opposition stronghold. Our correspondent who covered polling units in Alimosho Local Government, Nigeria’s largest local government in the country’s commercial capital, Lagos, observed clusters of non-state actors in branded jackets tagged “TEAM LAGOS SECURITY” walking around voting centres with chants of intimidation and threats of violence.

The ruling APC’s incumbent Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who has been in the Lagos state government for the past two decades, faced a strong challenge from Labour Party’s Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, an architecture and political activist.

A citizen journalist, Gbenga Faith who attempted to take pictures of the threatening mob was harassed and had his phone seized and forcefully made to delete the pictures.

There are also various videos online of thugs moving around while in some cases voters gearing up to restrain potential attackers.

(INSERT VIDEO 1, 2, 3)

The incidences of disruption led to the postponement of elections at some polling centres like the VGC polling unit in Lekki, an eyebrow area in Eti-Osa local government in Lagos.

Meanwhile, officials of the electoral commission, INEC have begun counting elections amid reports of scattered violence and voter intimidation. No official results have been announced by the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC).

Recall that INEC postponed the governorship and state legislature elections which were initially scheduled to hold on March 11 by one week. Beyond Lagos, in Imo state, southeastern Nigeria, INEC said violence occurred such that security forces rescued 19 electoral officials who had been abducted by thugs, but election materials were lost.

The commission in a statement noted, “while the commission remains grateful to the security operatives, it condemns such acts of thuggery, intimidation, and disenfranchisement of voters.”

There is a new political wave traceable to the presidential candidacy of dark-horse, Peter Obi of the Labour Party who appears anti-establishment and an appealing candidate to the demography of young voters. Obi came third at the national polls in the February 25th elections but his popularity has influenced victories for less popular candidates of the Labour Party at different levels across the country.

Meanwhile, regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States in a statement expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the elections.

“The ECOWAS Election Observation Mission has been monitoring the process, which has been peaceful generally with all the stakeholders present (INEC officials, party agents, and voters) expressing satisfaction at the process,” the statement reads in part.

Politics

South Africa: Opposition Democratic Alliance open to coalition with ruling ANC

Published

on

The Democratic Alliance (DA), the second-most popular party in South Africa, has revealed that it would not rule out a compromise with the ruling African National Congress (ANC).

The DA says it will consider the move if the ANC does not get the necessary majority to maintain its hold on power in the May elections.

The May 29 election might prove to be the biggest test yet for Nelson Mandela’s former party which has ruled South Africa since the end of white minority rule thirty years ago. Voters dissatisfied with inadequate service delivery, unemployment, crime, and power outages might cause the ANC to lose its legislative majority according to pollsters.

Another bottleneck for the ANC is the factional division it has suffered with former President Jacob Zuma’s political base out of the party, having created the uMkhonto weSizwe (Spear of the Nation). In that case, as the president of South Africa is chosen by the parliament, neither President Cyril Ramaphosa nor a replacement for the position could hold onto power without the support of a coalition.

“It would depend on which ANC you’re dealing with and what their programme of action is,” DA leader John Steenhuisen said, declining to disclose whether any talks had already taken place.

“I’m not ruling out anything, depending on what the election results are.”

Meanwhile, Nomvula Mokonyane, the ANC’s deputy party secretary, informed reporters earlier this month that the party was not thinking about forming a coalition government with other parties and that she did not believe a power-sharing agreement would succeed.

To garner the majority of votes required to win government, the Democratic Alliance has united with smaller parties. These include the longtime ANC bitter rival, the Zulu nationalist Inkatha Freedom Party; additionally, Action SA, which has developed a platform based on a strong anti-immigration stance and appeals to working- and middle-class voters; and Freedom Front Plus, which targets rural white South Africans who feel politically marginalized since apartheid.

While the EFF is well-liked among low-income Black South Africans, companies and the rich view the DA as a party that supports business. The EFF pledges to address land ownership disparities and nationalize industries.

“It’s a long shot,” Steenhuisen said. He added that if the opposition coalition did not win, his priority would be to prevent the Marxist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) from getting a seat on the executive.

“What I call the ‘doomsday coalition’ … is a tie-up between the EFF and the ANC,” he said.

Continue Reading

Politics

44-year-old Bassirou Faye set to become Senegal’s president

Published

on

The leading opposition candidate in Sunday’s presidential election in Senegal, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, is set to become the president-elect of the West African country.

Faye, who was released from prison only a few days ago, is winning with almost 54% of the vote, with 90% of the ballots counted by the electoral commission.

Following the counting of 90% of the polling station results, the Senegalese Electoral Commission declared that Faye had secured 53.68% of the vote, while Amadou Ba, the candidate for the ruling coalition, secured 36.2% of the vote.

For him, everything changed in July when fiery popular leader and fellow detainee, Ousmane Sonko, was accused of insurrection and disqualified from contesting to succeed President Macky Sall in elections. This cleared the way for Faye to seize control of the race, and on Monday, his 44th birthday, emerge victorious after his opponent gave up.

Much of Faye’s success can be attributed to the support of Sonko who enjoys high popularity, particularly among young people.

Other presidential contenders had called Faye to concede defeat. Ba, another major contender in the election, in a statement, said, “In light of presidential election result trends and while we await the official proclamation, I congratulate… Faye for his victory in the first round.”

Shortly before the announcement, outgoing President Macky Sall also congratulated Faye, “I salute the smooth running of the presidential election of March 24, 2024, and congratulate the winner, Mr. Bassirou Diomaye Faye, who the trends show as the winner. It is the victory of Senegalese democracy.”

“In electing me, the Senegalese people have decided on a break with a past,” Faye told journalists in his first public appearance since the election. “your I promise to govern with humility and transparency.”

Many anticipate that following three years of unparalleled political upheaval and multiple waves of lethal anti-government protests, the vote will bring economic stability and a boost. Already, there are reports that Faye’s imminent victory have caused Senegal’s international bonds to rise, reversing steep declines from earlier in the day.

The Dakar appeals court is anticipated to release the complete, official results on Friday.

Senegal is a republic with multiple parties. The president, who is chosen by universal adult direct suffrage and is eligible for two five-year terms, is the head of state under the 2001 constitution, which established a highly centralized presidential system. The president appoints the prime minister, who leads the government.

Continue Reading

EDITOR’S PICK

Strictly Personal2 hours ago

Off we go again with public shows, humbug and clowning, By Jenerali Uliwengu

The potential contestants in the approaching elections are already sizing themselves up and assessing their chances of fooling their people...

Musings From Abroad3 hours ago

UAE’s IRH to consider stake in Zambia’s Lubambe copper mine

A division of the International Holding Company of Abu Dhabi, International Resources Holding (IRH), has announced that it plans to...

Sports3 hours ago

Paris Olympics: Nigeria’s D’Tigress in ‘group of death’, to battle Australia, France, Canada

Nigeria’s women national basketball team, D’Tigress, have been drawn in what many term the group of death after they were...

Tech3 hours ago

Egyptian AI-powered ed-tech startup Sprints raises $3m to scale up platform

Egyptian AI-powered ed-tech startup, Sprints, has announced raising $3 million bridge round of funding to help it scale up its...

Culture4 hours ago

Actress Yvonne Nelson lambasts Ghanaian President Akufo-Addo, labels his regime ‘8 years of lies’

Ghanaian actress and filmmaker, Yvonne Nelson, has lambasted President Nana Akufo-Addo over a viral video from the Neo-natal Intensive Care...

Metro4 hours ago

Zambia, Botswana sign cooperation instruments to enhance trade

Zambia and close neighbours, Botswana, have signed 10 instruments of cooperation aimed at enhancing trade relations between the two countries....

VenturesNow5 hours ago

Kenya, Uganda settle oil import dispute

In an effort to patch things up between the two neighbours, Kenya will permit Uganda’s landlocked state oil company to...

VenturesNow12 hours ago

No plan to increase taxes, Nigeria’s revenue chief says

The head of Nigeria’s revenue agency, Zacch Adedeji, has reaffirmed that there is no plan for the introduction of new...

Metro13 hours ago

Tinubu vows justice for slain soldiers, bestows national honours on them during burial

President Bola Tinubu has once again reiterated that killers of 17 soldiers of the Nigerian Army in Delta State on...

VenturesNow1 day ago

Nigeria’s central bank raises interest rate to 24.75% amid soaring inflation

Governor Olayemi Cardoso of Nigeria’s central bank has announced that the bank has increased its monetary policy rate by 200...

Trending