Most polling stations closed at 2 p.m. local time (1300 UTC) in Nigeria on Saturday following a delayed election to pick the president of Africa's most populous nation and leading oil producer.

Despite a promise by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that it had overcome logistical difficulties that forced the postponement of last weekend's vote, some polling stations still opened hours late.

A coalition of civic groups said there were delays to the delivery of some materials and the deployment of staff. Election officials allowed those stations to remain open past the afternoon deadline.

Incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari was one of the first to vote, and he emerged from the polling booth in his hometown of Daura, in the northwestern state of Katsina, to say he was confident of victory.

His main challenger, Atiku Abubakar, who represents the main opposition People's Democratic Party (PDP), voted in Yola, in the northeastern state of Adamawa.

Early results revealed Abubakar lost at his home polling station, with Buhari beating him with 186 votes to 167.

Economic woes weigh on Nigerians

Most observers say victory for either front-runner is still too close to call, with the outcome set to hinge on which man voters most trust to revamp an economy still struggling to recover from a 2016 recession.

The results — including for a parliamentary election that ran alongside — are to be announced early next week.

Saturday's election was postponed by a week just hours before polls were due to open on the morning of February 16, with officials blaming logistical challenges. The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the PDP accused each other of conspiring with INEC to rig the result.

Incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari casts his ballot. He is seeking a second term in office

Hours before polls opened on Saturday, suspected Islamist insurgents attacked the northeastern town of Geidam, forcing residents to flee. However, civilians returned to town hours after the attack and the polls were opened at noon local time, according to DW correspondent Al-Amin Suleiman.

Separately, reports surfaced about Boko Haram terrorists attacking the city of Maiduguri in the northeastern state of Borno with rocket fire, but these were disputed by local security forces.

The army and police claim to have "fired the shots themselves, in order to drive away the attackers," Suleiman reported from the scene.

"Many people still believe that the attacks were meant to keep them from exercising their right to vote," he added. "They remain determined to vote even at risk to their life."

Large crowds of people came to the polls, according to local officials.

"Despite everything, the people in Borno refuse to be intimidated," Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima said. "This is a reason for joy."

Despite the delays and concerns that heavy security may intimidate potential voters, Buhari described the voting process as "smooth."

Some voters who made it to the polls encountered frustrating logistical problems. Before casting their ballot, registered voters must check to see if their serial number is listed on the wall at the polling station. But would-be voter Grace could not find her number on the list at a polling station in Abuja.

"I have checked, I cannot see my own," she told DW. "I have a voter's card, but I cannot vote because I don't have my serial number."

Grace was eventually assured by a polling station official that she would still be allowed to vote; however, DW cannot confirm that she cast her ballot.

#DefendYourVote

Nigerians are still divided over who deserves the top job. The majority of voters are under 35 and many young Nigerians want Buhari out.

"A lot of us are not happy," one young woman told DW. "There is bloodshed; the government is not doing a lot [to fix] what is happening in this country."

But others think Buhari deserves a second term, with one young male voter in Abuja telling DW: "He has fought corruption and he has actually provided direction."

Despite the record number of registered voters, militant group Boko Haram warned people not to cast their ballots. The group and its offshoot, Islamic State in West Africa Province, have carried out deadly sporadic raids in the northeastern Borno state.

The election campaign has coincided with fresh violence in northern Nigeria, blamed on criminal gangs as well as Boko Haram jihadis. More than 200 people have died since the start of this month alone.

Voters stand in line in front of a polling station in Abuja

72.8 million voting cards

Mahmood Yakubu, chairman of the INEC, said that 72.8 million cards had been collected out of 84 million registered voters. Candidates need to win the most votes and at least 25 percent support in two-thirds of Nigeria's 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja.

Buhari was elected president in 2015, but many Nigerians believe he has failed to live up to his initial campaign promises, which included cracking down on rampant corruption and fighting Boko Haram. For Abubakar, it is his fifth attempt at the presidency on the PDP ticket. The 72-year-old businessman-turned-politician has been implicated in a number of corruption scandals over the years.

Fanny Facsar contributed to this article.</s>Tens of millions of Nigerians went to the polls on Saturday a week after a last-minute election delay, as Africa’s most populous nation struggles with challenges including a stumbling economy and an ongoing Islamist insurgency by Boko Haram militants.

Just before polls opened, one soldier was killed and 20 others were injured as Boko Haram fighters waged attacks in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state and the largest city in the northeast.

The election was scheduled for last Saturday but a delay was announced just five hours before polls opened, amid reports that voting material had not been delivered to all parts of the country.

The postponement was expected to push turnout lower. Nigeria has no absentee voting system, and so many who returned to their hometowns to vote last week returned to where they live, not being able to afford a week away from work.

The delay also sparked widespread doubts in the integrity of the poll, with both the ruling and main opposition parties trading accusations of backdoor influence over the commission.

There were reports of sporadic violence, but there appeared to be no major disruptions — even though some polling station opened so late that voting in those areas could be extended to Sunday. Results are expected by early next week.

[From president to peanut farmer, Nigerians shocked by election delay]

The ruling party is represented by the incumbent, Muhammadu Buhari, a 76-year-old formed army general whose election in 2015 marked the first time any candidate had beaten a sitting president.

Atiku Abubakar, a 72-year-old veteran politician and business tycoon, is Buhari’s main challenger, though more than 60 other candidates from minor parties are also in the mix.

One of the most pressing campaign issues has been rampant violence around the country. More civilians were killed in targeted attacks in Nigeria last year than in either Yemen or Afghanistan, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.

Boko Haram and a breakaway faction that has pledged allegiance to ISIS have terrorized northeastern Nigeria for a decade, and simmering tensions between farmers and herders have exploded into across most of central and northwestern Nigeria.

Days before the initial vote date, a large convoy carrying Borno’s governor was attacked by Boko Haram. Government officials claimed only three were killed, but witness accounts cited by Reuters indicated at least 100 may have died and between 100 and 200 were taken captive. Boko Haram have equated voting with apostasy, warning civilians to stay away from polling stations.

Analysts say that hundreds were killed in dozens of incidents related to the election since late last year.

“In the capital, Abuja, the process of opening the polling stations was long, cumbersome, things were moving slowly,” said John G. Tomaszewski, Africa director at the International Republican Institute, an American organization monitoring the election. “But by and large, people are being very patient, which is great to see.”

Buhari has implored voters not to stop his “moving train” which he says has gained momentum against insecurity and is on its way to reviving a sluggish economy in which almost a quarter are unemployed.

Nigeria receives significant support from international organizations, as well as the United States and Britain, which held Nigeria as a colony until 1960. The U.S. government gave Nigeria more than $450 million in 2018, mostly for humanitarian aid relating to food and health. Buhari has traveled to Washington to meet President Trump and Nigeria works with the U.S. military on regional security issues.

“I will congratulate myself. I'm going to be the winner,” Buhari told reporters after he voted this morning in his hometown in Katsina state, the country’s poorest.

Buhari’s voter base is particularly strong in the mostly Muslim and overwhelmingly poor north of the country. He is perceived to be fairly untainted in a political arena renowned for corruption.

“This election is about who can be the bigger transformer,” said Abubakar Garba Mshelia, who teaches political science in the northeastern city of Yola and supports Buhari. “We need a credible person, with a plan. Buhari has proved he is without fear or favor.”

Buhari’s opponents say he lacks the energy to meet Nigeria’s mounting crises. Buhari spent almost half of 2017 in a London hospital nursing an undisclosed illness. He has denied that uses a body double.

Abubakar, who is popularly referred to by his first name Atiku, became enormously wealthy through an oil and logistics company he founded in 1982. Since then, he has been in and out of politics, sometimes on Buhari’s side, and at one point was vice president.

He has four wives and 28 children, and his autobiography is titled “Making Money.” His supporters hope he can attract foreign investment and spread Nigeria’s immense wealth around. Despite being Africa’s largest economy, almost 100 million Nigerians live on less than $2 a day.

Atiku has been subject to extensive corruption allegations. In 2005, as vice president, he was involved in an F.B.I. investigation of U.S. Rep. William Jefferson, a Louisiana Democrat, for allegedly bribery and collusion to help Jefferson win business contracts in Nigeria.

In 2010, a United States Senate report accused Atiku and Jennifer Douglas, his American fourth wife, of laundering over $40 million into the United States between 2000 and 2008.

Atiku’s campaign has repeatedly accused Buhari’s party of rigging, though the evidence they have provided has not been verified by independent observers.

Doubts of the election’s fairness, however, were deepened in January when Buhari dismissed Nigeria’s chief justice over his alleged failure to declare his assets before taking office. The chief justice would be the arbiter of any election-related disputes, and so the timing of his removal provoked alarm.

Ni­ger­ian politics has been criticized as being a closed club for elites to compete over extensive patronage systems and access to the country’s massive and mostly state-owned oil wealth.

In an op-ed, Ni­ger­ian novelist and satirist Elnathan John wrote that neither Buhari or Abubakar represented “any dis­cern­ible political ideology.”

“Almost every prominent politician supporting the opposition candidate has at some point been a member of the governing party. Quite a few government ministers and prominent politicians publicly supporting President Buhari were until recently members of the opposition,” he wrote. “Switching political parties not only is simple but also often needs no justification.”

Nigeria also comes close to dead last in the number of women it elects. Experts predict the number of women to win seats is likely to fall below 5 percent in this election.

In Yola, may women lamented the paucity of choices in this election, regardless of gender.

“We don’t have leaders who stand by us,” said Blessing Williams, 24, who works at a modest tailor shop in Yola. “Ours have no humility even though they are only where they are because of us small people.”

Ni­ger­ian soldiers ‘rescued’ women, then starved and raped them, report says

This little-known conflict in Nigeria is now deadlier than Boko Haram

Today’s coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news</s>Plans are afoot to potentially use violence or other means to disrupt Nigeria’s Presidential election re-scheduled for Saturday February 23, 2018, in order to discredit President Buhari, and Nigeria. I am not making an idle prediction. Knowing Nigeria and its history as I do, and the intent of financial predators to weaken the Nation State of Nigeria, one must be prepared.

Hours before the polls were to open, the Independent National Election Commission postponed the voting for one week. Leading up to the originally scheduled vote on February 16, circles in the US and UK issued unprovoked condemnations warning President Buhari to conduct a “fair and transparent” election. Why such warnings delivered weeks in advance, when Nigeria had distinguished itself in 2015 by conducting, by most accounts, the most honest Presidential election in its history? The most dangerous threat against President Buhari came from George Soros’ Open Society of West Africa. Soros, a member of the financial globalist oligarchy is notorious for using his worldwide tentacles to foster regime change. Read:

Earlier this week, Republican Congressman Chris Smith, who is the party’s point man on Africa, issued a denunciation of President Buhari. In his statement Cong Smith said: “Responsibility for the delay of Nigeria’s presidential election lays squarely with President Muhammadu Buhari and those close to him.” He went on to accuse the President of “undermining confidence that this election and subsequent gubernatorial elections will be free and fair…” Smith is no friend of Africa. He is a proponent of regime change and has joined with anti-Muslims forces in the US in calling for the removal Sudanese President Bashir. In April of 2018, when Ethiopia was celebrating the selection of Dr. Abiy Ahmed as its new, young reformist Prime Minister, Smith’s subcommittee on Africa, passed a resolution denouncing Ethiopia for alleged human rights violations.

On February 19, John Campbell (retired US Ambassador to Nigeria), published a blog for the Council of Relations raising suspicions of President Buhari’s involvement in the postponement of the February 16 election. Campbell reports that many Nigerians “are seeing the postponement as part of a strategy to throw the elections, most often to incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari.” He goes on to say: “Nigerians are also concerned that the postponement provides more opportunity for the incumbent powers to buy votes and deploy security services to intimidate voters.”

Campbell in his blog, retails the allegation from President Buhari’s opponent, Atiku Abubakar, “claiming that the Buhari administration postponed the vote to ensure a lower voter turnout.” He also repeats the accusation that President Buhari’s plan: “is to provoke the public, hoping for a negative reaction, and then use that as an excuse for further anti-democratic acts.”

Violence: A Political Weapon 

There are forces inside and outside Nigeria, who would like to undermine the nation’s sovereignty, preferring a malleable government that would permit the continued exploitation of Nigeria. Since Royal Dutch Shell descended on Nigeria with its first oil well in 1956, Nigeria has never been truly sovereign. Mega oil companies and their financial cohorts, conspiring with a cabal of corrupt “middlemen,” have looted Nigeria’s oil for decades, resulting in economic and political instability for Africa’s largest populace.

The Buhari administration has not yet acted to fully mobilize the Nigerian economy as forcefully as required to end abject poverty and generate productive jobs for millions of unemployed youth. Not nearly enough has been done to reverse the British nurtured deep ethnic divisions that have instilled great mistrust in Nigerian society. Sadly, these volatile ethnic, religious, and geographic fault lines have been easily manipulated into wanton violence. However, President Buhari has displayed a nationalist commitment for economic development, initiating the largest expansion of vitally needed infrastructure in Nigeria’s history. He has also demonstrated his determination to alleviate the horrible conditions of life in the Lake Chad Basin (where Boko Haram recruits), through his steadfast support to replenishing the shrinking Lake Chad.

The next President of Nigeria should be decided by the Nigerian people. One cannot dismiss the likely probability that violence will be instigated as means to undermine the legitimacy of the election. Not only is there a history of violence in Nigerian elections, but Boko Haram, which has brutalized the Nigerian people, is dedicated to using violence as a political weapon. In the last two weeks leading up to this Saturday’s election, over one hundred Nigerians have been killed or injured. Not just by Boko Haram, and other extremists, but also from clashes between the APC and PDP, ethnic conflicts, and attacks by suspected herdsman. This has created an opportune environment that provocateurs may exploit in their scheme to disrupt the voting process in this all-important election.

Watch: Will Nigerian Election Be Destabilized? Interview with Lawrence Freeman</s>Vote-counting has started in Nigeria's much-anticipated election, a week after it was postponed by election officials who blamed logistical challenges.

The country's 73 million voters will choose between dozens of presidential candidates, including incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, who is seeking a second term to take the country to the "next level."

The other front-runner is Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president and businessman who has promised to jump start Nigeria's economy. The Associated Press reported both lead candidates cast their votes on Saturday, Buhari jokingly checking his wife's ballot to see how she had voted.

Analysts say the race is too close to call, AP reported. But both candidates have said they're confident they will win.

On Saturday, Buhari responded to journalists asking if he would accept defeat and congratulate the winner if he loses: "I will congratulate myself," he said laughingly. "I'm going to be the winner. Thank you very much."

Buhari's main challenger, Abubakar, also answered confidently when asked about the outcome of the presidential vote. "I look forward to a successful transition," Abubakar said. Asked what he would do if he loses, he replied, "I am a democrat."

Observers say preliminary results are expected in two to four days, according to The Washington Post.

The presidential candidates renewed a pact last week aimed at keeping the election peaceful. Four years ago, Buhari was the first-ever opposition candidate to defeat an incumbent president. That election was mainly peaceful, but past elections haven't been.

"This government will do its very best to ensure that the 2019 elections take place in a secure and peaceful atmosphere," Buhari has vowed, as NPR reported.

But gunfire and blasts were heard in several cities before the polls opened.

According to Reuters, suspected Islamist militants attacked a town in northeastern Nigeria on Saturday morning. The Islamic State's West Africa Province claimed credit, but, at first, the army denied there was an attack, Reuters reported. According to AP, Nigerian security authorities have since acknowledged the attack.

Residents told Reuters they fled in response to the attacks: "We are right now running and hiding in the bushes," Yobe state resident Ibrahim Gobi said.

According to AP, some Nigerians said the extremist attack in the country's northeast kept them away from the polls.

Other factors might impact voter turnout, too. After last week's delay, many Nigerians were angered by the last-minute change and said they wouldn't vote.

But on Saturday, there were long lines outside a primary school in the capital Abuja, where men and women, some with babies strapped to their backs, stood under the scorching sun, waiting to vote.

The main issues on voters' minds are the economy, security and jobs.

"I'm voting for continuity," Ruka Ajana, a voter, told NPR. "I'm voting for the building of a foundation on which future governments could build on ... [so] a dog can be a president in Nigeria in the future and everything will still work."

Gbenga Komolafe told NPR he voted with the country's economy in mind.

"The priorities are to strengthen our democracy, to get the economy right," said Komolafe. To him, that means reducing unemployment and making sure the county is secure.

Komolafe is in his late 50s, but many voters skew younger.

"Half the population here is a very youthful population," NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton said Sunday in an interview on Weekend Edition. "They want whoever their new leaders are to really make sure that the potential wealth of Nigeria is shared."

Security is also a major concern; in the northeast, the Boko Haram insurgency continues, and in central Nigeria, herder-farmer conflicts over land and grazing rights have cost hundreds of lives. "These are the issues," reported Quist-Arcton. "They want to see stability, they want to see prosperity."



And now we turn to Nigeria, where millions voted today in an election marked by dramatic twists. At the last minute, the vote was delayed a week because of logistical challenges, infuriating many people. But across the country, voters formed long lines outside polling stations under the scorching sun for a generally peaceful election. However, violent incidents were reported in several cities with explosions in the northeastern part of the country where an insurgency continues. NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton is in the capital Abuja, and she's with us now.

Ofeibea, thanks so much for joining us.

MARTIN: So at last, Nigerians have voted, albeit a week late. You watched the vote unfold. Tell us what the voters have been telling you.

QUIST-ARCTON: Voters were saying, oh, at last we're here. Listen, for example, to Ruka Ajana. She said that she was ready to vote a week ago, but she was determined to vote today because voting is so important. Listen to what she says are the priorities.

RUKA AJANA: This is a rich, beautiful country. And anybody from any part of Nigeria can rule us, but I need that person that will put sanity, that will clean up the mess we're in today because we deserve to be better than this. We're not where we're supposed to be.

MARTIN: Ofeibea, what about the presidential candidates? What did the frontrunners have to say after they voted?

QUIST-ARCTON: President Buhari was in a joking mood this morning. He was asked by journalists, what if you lose? Will you concede? He said, oh, no. I'm going to be congratulating myself because I'll win. Now, the main opposition challenger, Atiku Abubakar, former vice president and a businessman - he was asked the same question. And he said, oh, I'm waiting for a very peaceful and orderly transition. And when he was asked, well, if you lose, what will happen, he said, I'm a democrat.

So they are both being presidential about the way they're behaving. But we're told that in his own polling unit that Atiku Abubakar, the main opposition hopeful, lost the vote to the president. So I guess that is democracy.

MARTIN: You know, the hashtag #NigeriaDecides2019 was trending worldwide on Twitter. What do you think that says?

QUIST-ARCTON: They use this time, and they make up half the electorate. Eighty three million people were registered to vote, 73 million picked up their voting cards and the young people are determined. There is the Not Too Young To Run campaign, for example, trying to get more of Nigeria's youth into leadership positions - maybe not president this time but certainly into the National Assembly and state assemblies as well.

They're saying, this is our time. President Muhammadu Buhari is in his 70s, so is Atiku Abubakar. The youth say no, this has got to change. We are Nigeria's future and present, and we need to be represented. So it's really important to see what the youth vote and the youth turnout is going to be at this election.

MARTIN: And finally, Ofeibea, you know, voting is the first step, but then the results have to be announced. What do you anticipate? I recall that that's often the trickiest part of elections in Nigeria.

QUIST-ARCTON: Because there is always that specter of violence if people are not happy with the outcome. So there have been appeals for peaceful elections and especially a peaceful and calm post-election period. We'll have to see. But let me just tell you that the economy is the big thing that people are talking about - also, jobs for the unemployed youth and, of course, peace and security. So all Nigerians are aware of this despite the violent incidents today.

MARTIN: That is Ofeibea Quist-Arcton in Nigeria's capital, Abuja.

Ofeibea, thank you so much.

QUIST-ARCTON: Always a pleasure. Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.</s>Abuja, Nigeria - Nigeria makes a second attempt to hold presidential and parliamentary elections this weekend, after a last-gasp postponement that angered voters and stoked the political temperature. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will on Saturday try again to stage Africa's biggest vote, at which President Muhammadu Buhari is seeking a second, four-year term.

Challenging him in what is expected to be a close race is Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president.

INEC chairman Mahmood Yakubu has faced calls to resign since he announced the one-week delay just hours before polling was due to begin last Saturday.

But he has since tried to calm nerves, insisting the body remains "on course" to overcome the logistical problems that hampered delivery of election materials.

"I want to reassure you that elections will hold on Saturday," he told a news conference in Abuja on Thursday. "There won't be another postponement."

All eyes will be on the nearly 120 000 polling stations when they open at 0700 GMT to see if the correct ballot boxes, papers and results sheets have been delivered -- and on time.

IT specialists have worked round-the-clock to reconfigure some 180 000 machines that are needed to check biometric identity cards, and allow people to vote.

Just over 84 million voters have been registered this year, although INEC said 11.2 million (13.7 percent) had failed to pick up their permanent voters' cards (PVCs).

There are more people with cards than at the last election. However, the uncollected cards will likely add to fears about a lower turn-out and do little to alleviate persistent fears of fraud.

Many Nigerians travel from commercial centres such as Lagos to their home towns and villages. Fewer people are expected to be able to afford to do so again -- or want to.

At the last elections in 2015, there were 67.4 million registered voters. Buhari, of the All Progressives Congress (APC), won 15.4 million of the 28.5 million valid votes cast.

Repeated delays in the distribution and collection of identity cards this time have led to suspicions of skullduggery and conspiracy between the parties and INEC.

Both the APC and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have been accused of trying to buy the cards, with a view to rig the result.

At governorship elections in southwest Nigeria last year, it was claimed the APC and PDP were offering 3 000 to 5 000 naira ($8-13, 7-12 euros) per card.

Thousands of PVCs and card readers have been destroyed in three suspicious fires at separate INEC offices in central and southeast Nigeria.

Yakubu has said there is "no evidence that the commission has been sabotaged", despite a whirlwind of accusations that INEC has been compromised that could hit the vote's credibility.

At 76 and 72, Buhari and Abubakar are the oldest of 73 presidential candidates and are standing in what could be the last elections of their long political careers.

Both have been fixtures on Nigeria's political landscape for decades, through the turbulent decades of military rule to the return to civilian rule in 1999.

Just over half of all registered voters are aged 18-35, reflecting the country's increasingly young population. No date has been given for the results, but an announcement is expected from early next week.

Buhari, a former military ruler, has again positioned himself as the candidate to tackle multiple security challenges, including Boko Haram Islamists, and endemic corruption.

He also wants another four years to complete much-needed road and rail infrastructure projects and expand social mobility schemes, including micro-finance for the poorest.

Abubakar, meanwhile, is seen as a pro-business free marketeer, whose main pledges have been to privatise state-run companies and float the embattled naira currency.

The past has come back to haunt both candidates, with Abubakar dogged by his alleged links to corruption cases in the United States and Buhari claims of creeping authoritarianism.

Earlier this month he suspended Nigeria's chief justice after he was charged with corruption.

But with the Supreme Court he presides over likely to rule on any election petition, many suspected a political motive.

Uppermost in many voters' minds on Saturday will be on safety, with tensions running high that increases the chance of violence, particularly in swing states.

Buhari this week said he had ordered the police and the military to be "ruthless" with vote-riggers and ballot-snatchers.

The army, which is not responsible for election security, has backed Buhari but Abubakar has said "the era of dictatorship and military rule."</s>Vote-counting has started in Nigeria's much-anticipated election, a week after it was postponed by election officials who blamed logistical challenges.

The country's 73 million voters will choose between dozens of presidential candidates, including incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, who is seeking a second term to take the country to the "next level."

The other front-runner is Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president and businessman who has promised to jump start Nigeria's economy. The Associated Press reported both lead candidates cast their votes on Saturday, Buhari jokingly checking his wife's ballot to see how she had voted.

Analysts say the race is too close to call, AP reported. But both candidates have said they're confident they will win.

On Saturday, Buhari responded to journalists asking if he would accept defeat and congratulate the winner if he loses: "I will congratulate myself," he said laughingly. "I'm going to be the winner. Thank you very much."

Buhari's main challenger, Abubakar, also answered confidently when asked about the outcome of the presidential vote. "I look forward to a successful transition," Abubakar said. Asked what he would do if he loses, he replied, "I am a democrat."

Observers say preliminary results are expected in two to four days, according to The Washington Post.

The presidential candidates renewed a pact last week aimed at keeping the election peaceful. Four years ago, Buhari was the first-ever opposition candidate to defeat an incumbent president. That election was mainly peaceful, but past elections haven't been.

"This government will do its very best to ensure that the 2019 elections take place in a secure and peaceful atmosphere," Buhari has vowed, as NPR reported.

But gunfire and blasts were heard in several cities before the polls opened.

According to Reuters, suspected Islamist militants attacked a town in northeastern Nigeria on Saturday morning. The Islamic State's West Africa Province claimed credit, but, at first, the army denied there was an attack, Reuters reported. According to AP, Nigerian security authorities have since acknowledged the attack.

Residents told Reuters they fled in response to the attacks: "We are right now running and hiding in the bushes," Yobe state resident Ibrahim Gobi said.

According to AP, some Nigerians said the extremist attack in the country's northeast kept them away from the polls.

Other factors might impact voter turnout, too. After last week's delay, many Nigerians were angered by the last-minute change and said they wouldn't vote.

But on Saturday, there were long lines outside a primary school in the capital Abuja, where men and women, some with babies strapped to their backs, stood under the scorching sun, waiting to vote.

The main issues on voters' minds are the economy, security and jobs.

"I'm voting for continuity," Ruka Ajana, a voter, told NPR. "I'm voting for the building of a foundation on which future governments could build on ... [so] a dog can be a president in Nigeria in the future and everything will still work."

Gbenga Komolafe told NPR he voted with the country's economy in mind.

"The priorities are to strengthen our democracy, to get the economy right," said Komolafe. To him, that means reducing unemployment and making sure the county is secure.

Komolafe is in his late 50s, but many voters skew younger.

"Half the population here is a very youthful population," NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton said Sunday in an interview on Weekend Edition. "They want whoever their new leaders are to really make sure that the potential wealth of Nigeria is shared."

Security is also a major concern; in the northeast, the Boko Haram insurgency continues, and in central Nigeria, herder-farmer conflicts over land and grazing rights have cost hundreds of lives. "These are the issues," reported Quist-Arcton. "They want to see stability, they want to see prosperity."</s>YOLA, Nigeria — The Latest on Nigeria’s Election (all times local):

A spokesman for Nigeria’s electoral commission says voting is still taking place Sunday “in several places” across the country.

Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, the commission’s director for publicity, gave no details about specific states where polls are still open. But some of the states affected by delays reportedly include Plateau, Nasarawa and Jigawa.

The head of the electoral commission is expected to address the nation later Sunday as Nigerians await the results of Saturday’s presidential election.

The election has been marred by sporadic violence and delays at some polling stations that faced problems ranging from missing stamps to malfunctioning card readers.

More than 72 million people were eligible to vote.

Vote counting continued Sunday as Nigerians awaited the outcome of a presidential poll seen as a tight race between the president and a former vice-president.

Although voting was peaceful in most areas of Nigeria Saturday, there were a few outbreaks of violence in the vast West African country and many reports of delays at polling stations.

Many polling stations remained open after dark to allow people waiting in line to vote. Turnout appeared light following the last-minute postponement of the election for a week. More than 72 million people were eligible to vote.

There were media reports Sunday of voting still taking place in some remote areas that experienced problems Saturday.

President Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler who won election in 2015, is seeking his second term against more than 70 candidates. His main rival is Atiku Abubakar, a former vice-president and billionaire businessman.

Many Nigerians, appalled that their country recently became the world leader in the number of people living in extreme poverty, said the election will be decided by economic issues. Nigeria suffered a rare, months-long recession under Buhari when global oil prices crashed, with unemployment growing significantly to 23 per cent and inflation in the double digits.

Abubakar’s party is alleging “deliberate” voter suppression in areas where Buhari’s party is known to be unpopular.

One of the largest domestic observer groups, Watching the Vote, told reporters on Sunday that Nigeria had missed its chance to improve on the 2015 election. Logistical problems caused 59 per cent of the polling stations it monitored to open late, and misconduct at some stations hurt people’s ability to vote. The issues, however, didn’t necessarily undermine the election’s credibility, spokesman Hussaini Abdu said.

In the northern city of Kano tempers flared at one collation centre where unaccredited Abubakar supporters alleged that ballots from a couple of polling units hadn’t been counted. Amid shouting, security personnel pushed them out of the courtyard’s metal door.

A ruling party supervisor, Joy Bako, watched in exasperation before they engaged her in a heated argument.

“It was free and fair,” she said. “Nobody was arguing. I’m surprised at all this noise.”

Observers and workers at the collation centre, and others who had visited multiple centres, reported a peaceful process in an area where voters were expected to largely support Buhari.

Even an opposition supporter, Abubakar Ali, paused from the ruckus to acknowledge that “everything was going clear.” But a lot of people did not come out to vote as compared to the last time, he said.

Godwin Ugbala, who spent the election as an agent for one of the country’s dozens of small political parties, reported a smooth voting day and added his voice to the frustration with Buhari.

“This one failed us in so many ways,” Ugbala said. “No business. Everything is tired.”

He voted for Buhari in 2015 but said the president had “betrayed” the people by not following up on his promises.

Nigeria’s presidential election was held a week late, after the electoral commission said it needed more time to organize the logistics of holding a credible election

Observers said the postponement, blamed on logistical challenges, could favour Buhari, with some Nigerians saying they didn’t have the resources to travel a second time to their place of registration.

It’s unclear when a winner will be announced, but some observers say it could be Tuesday or Wednesday.

Follow AP’s full coverage of the Nigeria elections here: https://www.apnews.com/Nigeria</s>As many as 39 people have been killed in election violence in Nigeria, civil society groups said on Sunday, as the country awaited the results of voting in what was forecast to be its tightest election since the end of military rule in 1999.

The Situation Room - which represents more than 70 civil society groups - gave the death toll the day after voting, citing data from Lagos-based consultancy SBM Intelligence. But authorities were braced for the possibility of further unrest after election results emerge later this week.

President Muhammadu Buhari, 76, a former military ruler who is seeking a second term on an anti-corruption platform, faces Atiku Abubakar, 72, a businessman and former vice president who has promised to expand the role of the private sector. Deputy Inspector General of Police Abdulmajid Ali said police were still gathering information and could not provide figures on casualties. He said violence was greatest in the southern states of Rivers and Akwa Ibom.

The Nigeria Police Force said 128 people had been arrested nationwide for election-related offenses including homicide, theft of ballot boxes and vote fraud. Thirty-eight weapons and a cache of explosives were also recovered.

The Situation Room said the worst incident was in Abonnema in Rivers State, around 14 km (9 miles) west of the main oil industry city of Port Harcourt, where the army said seven people died in a shoot-out between an unidentified gang and Nigerian soldiers.

A lieutenant and six gunmen died in the firefight, which broke out when the attackers barricaded a major road into the town and ambushed the troops, the acting director of army public relations, Colonel Sagir Musa, said. Their motives were not known.

Nigerian security forces are stretched by an Islamist insurgency in the northeast along with communal violence and banditry in other areas. Previous elections have been marred by violence among supporters of different political parties that at times sparked sectarian clashes.

A credible and relatively calm poll would open a new chapter in the checkered political history of Nigeria, where nearly six decades of independence have been tarnished by military coups, endemic corruption and secessionist movements.

The number of deaths reported Sunday was below the final tolls in previous elections in Africa's most populous country. However, most unrest typically occurs after results are announced.

Results are expected to start trickling in early on Monday with a "substantial number" likely on Tuesday, election commission official Festus Okoye said.

As many as 100 people were killed during and after the last election in 2015, according to the International Crisis Group.

Four years before that, in the religiously mixed northern city of Kaduna, 800 people died when fighting erupted between Muslims and the mainly Christian backers of then-President Goodluck Jonathan. Islamist militants in the Northeast vowed to disrupt this year's election. Hours before polls opened, explosions rang out in Maiduguri, capital of Borno state at the epicenter of the decade-long insurgency. In neighboring Yobe state, residents of Geidam town fled an attack around the same time.

The election was postponed the previous Saturday just hours before it was due to begin, with the authorities citing problems in delivering ballot papers and results sheets in some parts of the country.

Despite the violence, some noted that it could have been worse.

"We didn't expect that the election would be so smooth ... we thought people might be dying," said Henry Okalome, 55, a trader in Kano who voted for Atiku.

Violence and problems with electronic voting machines meant voting took place in a small number of places on Sunday.

Seventy-three million eligible voters chose from a pool of more than 70 presidential candidates, although only those from the two main parties - Buhari and Atiku - are seen as having a chance.

The contest between the two men hinges on revamping an economy struggling to recover from its first recession in 25 years, which it slipped into in 2016 and emerged from in 2017.

Nearly a quarter of the workforce is unemployed, while the cost of living has also risen rapidly.

Buhari has focused his campaign on rooting out corruption, but critics say there have not been any significant convictions in his first term. Atiku has said he would aim to double the size of the economy to $900 billion by 2025.</s>The leading candidates in Nigeria's presidential and parliamentary elections called for peace Friday ahead of the weekend balloting.

Incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, who is seeking a second four-year term as candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress party, encouraged Nigerians to vote and to be sure of the Nigerian Independent National Electoral Commission's ability to conduct the election.</s>The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment led project Made in Nigeria for Export, aims to develop world-class special economic zones in the country, writes Obinna Chima

Since Nigeria gained independence, successive governments have continued to talk about the need for policies to stimulate industrial growth and transform the economy from its present structure. This has seen successive governments introduce various policies to help drive their quest for industrialisation.

Unfortunately, the results have been disappointing as things continue to remain the same.

 Some of the factors that have stalled the country’s industrialisation story include policy summersault, market failure, lack of political will and market distortion. Indeed, the slow pace of Nigeria’s industrialisation is responsible for the nation’s disappointing performance in tackling poverty and providing jobs for its bulging youth population.

That is why whenever commodity prices decline and global grow slows, the country is always affected.

 In fact, Nigeria’s high import dependence explains why the naira, the country’s currency is often the bellwether for Nigeria’s economic health.

Clearly, the need to accelerate the country’s industrialisation, the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) had identified the development of Special Economic Zones (SEZs).

The SEZs are major strategic tools to accelerate the implementation of the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP). Also, the project MINE (Made in Nigeria For Exports) was envisioned by the Federal Ministry of Industry Trade and Investment (MITI) and the Nigeria Export Processing Zone Authority (NEPZA), to develop SEZs to world class standards and position Nigeria as the pre-eminent manufacturing hub in sub-Saharan Africa and a major exporter of made in Nigeria goods and services regionally and globally.

Project MINE, which is to develop the world-class zones, was designed to position Nigeria as the pre-eminent manufacturing hub in sub-Saharan Africa, and a major exporter of made in Nigeria goods and services regionally and globally.

Among others, the project sought to aid structural transformation of the Nigerian economy by increasing the manufacturing sector’s contribution to Gross Domestic Product to 20 per cent by 2025; contribute to sustainable inclusive growth by creating 1.5 million new manufacturing jobs in the initial phase of the project and increase and diversify foreign exchange earnings by increasing manufacturing sector exports to at least $30 billion annually by 2025.

Others include the creation of local models of global best practice in provision of world class infrastructure at competitive costs connecting SEZs to international and regional markets with transport links, uninterrupted power, ICT, water, sewage and other services to ensure smooth and efficient operation of SEZ businesses; promote the “cluster” effect to be gained by locating similar export-oriented manufacturing businesses within the same locality and attract world class investors with strong positions in global supply chains and investors with potential to increase the scale of operations rapidly to set up operations in SEZs.

“The first phase of the project is to focus on the development and upgrade of SEZs in 12 states across Nigeria, following which the initiative will be extended to other States in subsequent phases.

“This involves, among others, partnering with the private sector to develop new world-class SEZs in Abia, Katsina and Lagos as pilot projects to demonstrate proof of concept and provide models for future SEZ development Nigeria.

“On governance, oversight of the project rests with the Honourable Minister of Industry, Trade & Investment, supported by the Honourable Minister of State and the Permanent Secretary, who comprise the leadership of MITI.

“The leadership of MITI is supported by a Project Steering Committee (SteerCo), with membership drawn from a cross section of stakeholders, set up to support project oversight, governance and implementation.

“It meets on a regular basis to review progress of project implementation, proffer advice and assist in problem solving,” the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment had explained.

To this end, on June 2018 the Nigeria SEZ Investment Company Limited (NSEZCO) was set up as the special purpose vehicle to deliver project MINE and harness the federal government’s spending on the SEZs.

However, even as major Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) were committing to fund the development of the SEZs in Abuja, work had commenced on Enyimba Economic City in Abia State.

“We agreed to be part of the project because it has been long-overdue. We have no doubt that it will succeed,” Managing Director of the Bank of Industry, Mr. Kayode Pitan had said.

For Abia State Governor Okezie Ikpeazu and the communities that donated land, it was hope kept alive as the management of Nigeria SEZ Investment Company Limited (NZESCO) and the Chief Executive Officers of Afreximbank, Bank of Industry and Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) signed the dotted lines at an event presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari in the Council Chambers of Aso Rock.

According to the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, “the initial projects such as the Enyimba Economic City, are underway and feasibility studies are going on in 8 states.”

The three DFIs were among the five to partner with NSEZCO and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated. NSEZCO intends to raise at least US$500 million in equity over the first five years to develop special economic zones in the country.

The other investment partners are African Development Bank (AfDB) and Africa Finance Corporation (AFC).

“This project will blossom and create 200,000 jobs because of the sheer enormity of the positive effects on my people. I see the concomitant impact on the life of my people and area.

“I know my people are people who want to create things, so all you need to do is to make them neighbours to people who are actively manufacturing,” the president said.

The Enyimba Economic City project believed to be capable of sparking industrial revolution in the South-East is a 9, 803 hectares of land, spanning three local government areas of Ukwa East, Ukwa West and Ugwunagbo.

It is located at the centre of the five South-east and four South-south states and it is to be designed to drive massive economic expansion of the region and by extension Nigeria.

The agreement for Economic City is a public- private partnership of NSEZCO, which holds 20 per cent stake, with the Abia State Government and Crown Realities Plc.

Managing Director, Enyimba Economic City Development Company Limited, Mr. Darl Uzu, noted that “the investment will facilitate the development of the economic city in line with government’s policy objectives and have a transformational impact in the entire South-Eastern and South-Southern area of the country.”

And further to the Memorandum of Understanding signed with the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, the Shandong Ruyi Group of China had announced an investment commitment of $2 billion to the Cotton, Textile and Garment industry in Nigeria by way of anchor investments in manufacturing facilities in Enyimba Economic City, Abia State, Funtua Cotton Cluster and Lekki Free Trade Zone.

In Lekki, the Lagos State Government has allocated a parcel of 1,000 hectares of land in the North East Quadrant of the Lekki Free Zone to the project company to be owned jointly by its holding company, Lekki Worldwide Investments Limited and NSEZCO.

Providing the background of the initiative, the President said: “When we decided to continue with the implementation of the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan of the previous Administration and launched our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan to fast track implementation, we had a vision of Nigeria as the pre-eminent manufacturing hub in Sub-Saharan Africa and a major exporter to our immediate West African sub-region, the rest of Africa and indeed the World.

“Special Economic Zones have an important role to play in achieving this vision. They offer investor friendly incentives, world class infrastructure and ease of doing business in order to attract local and foreign investment and have been used as a catalyst for rapid and inclusive development, job creation, industrialisation and diversified export earnings in several countries.”

On his part, the President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, Dr. Benedict Oramah, said the objectives of the bank aligns with that of the project and they are pleased with the ability of the project to grow industrialization.

Managing Director of Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, Mr. Uche Orji, thanked the president for the opportunity of the NSIA to participate in the project.

“The board saw it as an opportunity to help SEZCOs lift the country through industrialisation. It is a good platform for attracting investors and we look forward to its implementation,” he said.
After having been postponed by a week, Nigeria's general election takes place nationwide.