Nigeria’s presidential and parliamentary elections have been delayed for a week.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) made the announcement just five hours before the polls were due to open on Saturday.

“Proceeding with the election as scheduled is no longer feasible,” commission chairman Mahmood Yakubu said, citing logistical issues.

The vote has been rescheduled for Saturday 23 February.

The announcement came after an emergency meeting at the INEC headquarters in the capital, Abuja.

Why have elections been postponed?

Mr Yakubu said the decision was made following a “careful review” of the election “operational plan”, adding that there was a “determination to conduct free, fair and credible elections”.

He said the delay was necessary to give the commission time to address vital issues and “maintain the quality of our elections”, but did not provide further details.

In the past two weeks several INEC offices have been set alight, with thousands of electronic smart card readers and voter cards destroyed.

There have also been claims of shortages of election material in some of the country’s 36 states.

Nigeria has been forced to bolster its security, with the run-up to the elections marred by violence.

On Friday, officials in north-west Nigeria reported the discovery of the bodies of 66 people, 22 of them children and 12 women, killed by “criminal elements”.

How important is this poll?

The future of Africa’s most populous nation and largest economy is at stake.

Whoever wins will have to address power shortages, corruption, security problems and a sluggish economy.

There are 73 registered candidates in the presidential election, but campaigning has been dominated by President Muhammadu Buhari, 76, and his main challenger, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, 72.

Mr Buhari says he has built a strong foundation for prosperity, but his rival says Nigeria is not functioning.

Both men are from the mainly Muslim north of the country. While both are in their 70s, more than half of Nigeria’s 84 million registered voters are under 35.

Has Nigeria had election issues before?

Yes. Nigeria is not new to voting postponements – previous elections in 2011 and 2015 were delayed by several days.

In 2015, the country ordered the closure of all its land and sea borders ahead of tightly contested elections amid reports that foreigners planned to cross into Nigeria to vote.

That same year, one of the candidates died while the votes were being counted.</s>ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria’s presidential election set for Saturday is now expected to be delayed in parts of the country, two diplomats and a government source said on Friday, citing difficulties in transporting electoral materials in some areas.

President Muhammadu Buhari faces a tight election contest in Africa’s largest economy, top oil producer and most populous nation against the main opposition candidate, businessman and former vice president Atiku Abubakar.

An official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) told Reuters that “some result sheets and some ballot papers are reportedly missing. We want to track every (piece of) sensitive material, take inventory of what we have and what is missing”.

The official said if the election was to be postponed, INEC would have to talk with the political parties first before making any pronouncement.

“A decision has been taken. We are going to address you soon,” Rotimi Oyekanmi, chief press secretary to the National Chairman of INEC told reporters.

A government official said “the legitimacy of the entire process will be questioned and the winner could lack the moral authority to superintend the affairs of the state”.

One Western diplomat said: “Sensitive materials (ballot papers and results sheets) have been delayed in being distributed.”

Nigeria is also dealing with pockets of instability. Throughout the day, authorities bolstered security in much of the country on the eve of the vote in Africa’s largest democracy where past elections have been marred by violence, voter intimidation and ballot rigging.

Dozens of combat policemen and other security forces were deployed from police headquarters in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state on the country’s northeast frontier that has been worst hit by Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State in West Africa Province.</s>Making the announcement just five hours before polls were set to open on Saturday, it cited unspecified “challenges” amid reports that voting materials had not been delivered to all parts of the country.

The move was expected to cause outrage as many residents of Africa’s most populous nation and largest democracy had relocated for the chance to vote.

“This was a difficult decision to take but necessary for successful delivery of the elections and the consolidation of our democracy,” commission chairman Mahmood Yakubu told reporters in the capital, Abuja. He said more details would be released during an afternoon briefing.

A review of logistics, along with the determination to hold a credible vote, led the commission to conclude that going ahead with the election as planned was “no longer feasible”, he said.

Nigeria postponed the previous presidential election in 2015 because of insecurity in the north-east, which remains under threat from Islamic extremists.

As word filtered out after midnight of a possible election delay at least in some regions, the Situation Room, a civil society collective monitoring the vote, said in a statement that “any suggestion that the election be held in a staggered manner will be totally unacceptable, and would be a recipe for a disastrous election”.

More than 84 million voters in the country with a population of some 190 million had been expected to head to the polls in what is seen as a close and heated race between 76-year-old President Muhammadu Buhari and top challenger Atiku Abubakar, a billionaire former vice president.

Both have pledged to work for a peaceful election even as their supporters, including high-level officials, have caused alarm with vivid warnings against foreign interference and allegations of rigging.

“This is truly disappointing but … Nigeria will prevail,” the spokesman for Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said on Twitter, noting that Mr Buhari was already in his hometown where he had been set to vote.

When Mr Buhari came to power in 2015 he made history with the first defeat of an incumbent president in an election hailed as one of the most transparent and untroubled ever in Nigeria, which has seen deadly post-vote violence in the past.

Now he could become the second incumbent to be unseated.

His term has been marked by a crash in global oil prices that spun Nigeria’s heavily crude-dependent economy into a rare recession, from which it only emerged in 2017. Unemployment shot up. The country passed India as the nation with the most people living in extreme poverty. More than 13 million children are said to be out of school.

Insecurity on multiple fronts has seen little improvement, worrying neighbors of the West African regional powerhouse and beyond.

While the military pushed Boko Haram extremists out of many communities in the country’s north-east, claims of the group being “crushed” have withered in the face of continuing violence.

A new offshoot pledging allegiance to the Islamic State group has surged in recent months, attacking military bases – and this week, a governor’s convoy -sending tens of thousands more people fleeing.

On top of that, banditry in the north-west, oil militants in the south and deadly fighting in the central region between farmers and herders over increasingly precious land keep security forces stretched and the population on edge.

On Friday, authorities reported at least 66 deaths in a single community this week in what one resident blamed on farmer-herder clashes.

“We love our country and we need our country to be safe from all the violence … and all the nonsense that takes place during election time,” worshipper Amin Muhammad Khalif said as he emerged from Friday prayers in Kano, Nigeria’s second-largest city in a nation largely evenly split between Muslims and Christians.

Even in the fight against corruption, in which Mr Buhari could claim some progress, many in Nigeria have expressed concern that those targeted are mostly opposition figures.

Meanwhile, many Nigerians worry about Mr Buhari himself after he spent more than 150 days outside the country for still-unspecified medical treatment.

Spare in both charisma and physique, Mr Buhari spoke for just a few minutes at his final campaign rally on Thursday and struggled to hear or grasp a number of questions in a recent televised town hall.

Borrowing from US President Donald Trump, top challenger Mr Abubakar has campaigned on the theme of “Let’s Make Nigeria Work Again”, while vowing to apply his business acumen to privatise Nigeria’s all-important state oil company and lift 50 million people out of poverty by 2025.

Despite such proclamations, Mr Abubakar has never managed to shake years of corruption allegations. And, as Mr Buhari grumbled in his final pre-election address to the nation on Thursday, one “cannot simply proclaim jobs into existence”.

In the end, the now-delayed vote could come down to the sorry state of Africa’s largest economy and people’s empty pockets, and stomachs.

In Abuja, 56-year-old Bako Sharibu was wrist-deep in a dumpster as he fished out pieces of plastic for recycling. His shy smile disappeared as he recalled that he once had good work as a caretaker. Now he struggles to make his target of 300 naira (65p) a day.

“Everybody suffers too much. Hungry everywhere,” he said, adding that if he could save a few thousand naira he would send the money to his three children in northern Kaduna state.

Then he shook his pocket. It was near sunset. He had just 50 naira (11p).

He will be voting for Mr Abubakar, he said. Nigeria needs change.</s>ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria's presidential election set for Saturday is now expected to be delayed in parts of the country, two diplomats and a government source said on Friday, citing difficulties in transporting electoral materials in some areas.

President Muhammadu Buhari faces a tight election contest in Africa's largest economy, top oil producer and most populous nation against the main opposition candidate, businessman and former vice president Atiku Abubakar.

An official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) told Reuters that "some result sheets and some ballot papers are reportedly missing. We want to track every (piece of) sensitive material, take inventory of what we have and what is missing".

The official said if the election was to be postponed, INEC would have to talk with the political parties first before making any pronouncement.

"A decision has been taken. We are going to address you soon," Rotimi Oyekanmi, chief press secretary to the National Chairman of INEC told reporters.

A government official said "the legitimacy of the entire process will be questioned and the winner could lack the moral authority to superintend the affairs of the state".

One Western diplomat said: "Sensitive materials (ballot papers and results sheets) have been delayed in being distributed."

Nigeria is also dealing with pockets of instability. Throughout the day, authorities bolstered security in much of the country on the eve of the vote in Africa's largest democracy where past elections have been marred by violence, voter intimidation and ballot rigging.

Dozens of combat policemen and other security forces were deployed from police headquarters in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state on the country's northeast frontier that has been worst hit by Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State in West Africa Province.

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.

Firstpost is now on WhatsApp. For the latest analysis, commentary and news updates, sign up for our WhatsApp services. Just go to Firstpost.com/Whatsapp and hit the Subscribe button.</s>Nigeria’s electoral commission has delayed the country’s presidential election until February 23.

Making the announcement just five hours before polls were set to open on Saturday, it cited unspecified “challenges” amid reports that voting materials had not been delivered to all parts of the country.

The move was expected to cause outrage as many residents of Africa’s most populous nation and largest democracy had relocated for the chance to vote.

“This was a difficult decision to take but necessary for successful delivery of the elections and the consolidation of our democracy,” commission chairman Mahmood Yakubu told reporters in the capital, Abuja. He said more details would be released during an afternoon briefing.

A review of logistics, along with the determination to hold a credible vote, led the commission to conclude that going ahead with the election as planned was “no longer feasible”, he said.

Nigeria postponed the previous presidential election in 2015 because of insecurity in the north-east, which remains under threat from Islamic extremists.

As word filtered out after midnight of a possible election delay at least in some regions, the Situation Room, a civil society collective monitoring the vote, said in a statement that “any suggestion that the election be held in a staggered manner will be totally unacceptable, and would be a recipe for a disastrous election”.

More than 84 million voters in the country with a population of some 190 million had been expected to head to the polls in what is seen as a close and heated race between 76-year-old President Muhammadu Buhari and top challenger Atiku Abubakar, a billionaire former vice president.

Both have pledged to work for a peaceful election even as their supporters, including high-level officials, have caused alarm with vivid warnings against foreign interference and allegations of rigging.

“This is truly disappointing but … Nigeria will prevail,” the spokesman for Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said on Twitter, noting that Mr Buhari was already in his hometown where he had been set to vote.

When Mr Buhari came to power in 2015 he made history with the first defeat of an incumbent president in an election hailed as one of the most transparent and untroubled ever in Nigeria, which has seen deadly post-vote violence in the past.

Now he could become the second incumbent to be unseated.

His term has been marked by a crash in global oil prices that spun Nigeria’s heavily crude-dependent economy into a rare recession, from which it only emerged in 2017. Unemployment shot up. The country passed India as the nation with the most people living in extreme poverty. More than 13 million children are said to be out of school.

Insecurity on multiple fronts has seen little improvement, worrying neighbors of the West African regional powerhouse and beyond.

While the military pushed Boko Haram extremists out of many communities in the country’s north-east, claims of the group being “crushed” have withered in the face of continuing violence.

A new offshoot pledging allegiance to the Islamic State group has surged in recent months, attacking military bases – and this week, a governor’s convoy -sending tens of thousands more people fleeing.

On top of that, banditry in the north-west, oil militants in the south and deadly fighting in the central region between farmers and herders over increasingly precious land keep security forces stretched and the population on edge.

On Friday, authorities reported at least 66 deaths in a single community this week in what one resident blamed on farmer-herder clashes.

“We love our country and we need our country to be safe from all the violence … and all the nonsense that takes place during election time,” worshipper Amin Muhammad Khalif said as he emerged from Friday prayers in Kano, Nigeria’s second-largest city in a nation largely evenly split between Muslims and Christians.

Even in the fight against corruption, in which Mr Buhari could claim some progress, many in Nigeria have expressed concern that those targeted are mostly opposition figures.

Meanwhile, many Nigerians worry about Mr Buhari himself after he spent more than 150 days outside the country for still-unspecified medical treatment.

Spare in both charisma and physique, Mr Buhari spoke for just a few minutes at his final campaign rally on Thursday and struggled to hear or grasp a number of questions in a recent televised town hall.

Borrowing from US President Donald Trump, top challenger Mr Abubakar has campaigned on the theme of “Let’s Make Nigeria Work Again”, while vowing to apply his business acumen to privatise Nigeria’s all-important state oil company and lift 50 million people out of poverty by 2025.

Despite such proclamations, Mr Abubakar has never managed to shake years of corruption allegations. And, as Mr Buhari grumbled in his final pre-election address to the nation on Thursday, one “cannot simply proclaim jobs into existence”.

In the end, the now-delayed vote could come down to the sorry state of Africa’s largest economy and people’s empty pockets, and stomachs.

In Abuja, 56-year-old Bako Sharibu was wrist-deep in a dumpster as he fished out pieces of plastic for recycling. His shy smile disappeared as he recalled that he once had good work as a caretaker. Now he struggles to make his target of 300 naira (65p) a day.

“Everybody suffers too much. Hungry everywhere,” he said, adding that if he could save a few thousand naira he would send the money to his three children in northern Kaduna state.

Then he shook his pocket. It was near sunset. He had just 50 naira (11p).

He will be voting for Mr Abubakar, he said. Nigeria needs change.</s>ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria’s presidential election, which was due to be held on Saturday, has been postponed by a week, the chairman of the country’s electoral commission said hours before polls were due to open.

Addressing journalists in the early hours of Saturday, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman Mahmood Yakubu said the delay was needed to hold a free and fair election.

“The commission came to the conclusion that proceeding with the election as scheduled is no longer feasible. Consequently the commissioners decided to reschedule the presidential and national assembly elections to Saturday 23 February 2019,” he said.

President Muhammadu Buhari faces a tight election contest in Africa’s largest economy, top oil producer and most populous nation against the main opposition candidate, businessman and former vice president Atiku Abubakar.

The country’s presidential elections in 2011 and 2015 were also delayed over logistics and security issues.

Prior to the announcement there were statements commenting on concerns over the election.

An INEC official told Reuters that “some result sheets and some ballot papers are reportedly missing. We want to track every (piece of) sensitive material, take inventory of what we have and what is missing”.

And a government official said, “The legitimacy of the entire process will be questioned and the winner could lack the moral authority to superintend the affairs of the state.”

One Western diplomat said: “Sensitive materials (ballot papers and results sheets) have been delayed in being distributed.”

Nigeria is also dealing with pockets of instability. Throughout the day, authorities bolstered security in much of the country on the eve of the vote in Africa’s largest democracy where past elections have been marred by violence, voter intimidation and ballot rigging.

Dozens of combat policemen and other security forces were deployed from police headquarters in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state on the country’s northeast frontier that has been worst hit by Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State in West Africa Province.</s>ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria's presidential election, which was due to be held on Saturday, has been postponed by a week, the chairman of the country's electoral commission said hours before polls were due to open.

Addressing journalists in the early hours of Saturday, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman Mahmood Yakubu said the delay was needed to hold a free and fair election.

"The commission came to the conclusion that proceeding with the election as scheduled is no longer feasible. Consequently the commissioners decided to reschedule the presidential and national assembly elections to Saturday 23 February 2019," he said.

President Muhammadu Buhari faces a tight election contest in Africa's largest economy, top oil producer and most populous nation against the main opposition candidate, businessman and former vice president Atiku Abubakar.

The country's presidential elections in 2011 and 2015 were also delayed over logistics and security issues.

The decision to delay this year's vote was criticised by the chairman of the main opposition People's Democratic Party (PDP).

Uche Secondus said the move was an action that was "dangerous to our democracy and unacceptable", adding that it was part of an attempt by Buhari to "cling on to power even when it's obvious to him that Nigerians want him out".

And the president's ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party criticised the electoral commission for the delay.

Buhari "cooperated fully with INEC by ensuring everything it demanded to conduct free and fair elections were promptly made available", it said in a statement. "This news is therefore a huge disappointment to us," it said.

Prior to the announcement there were statements commenting on concerns over the election.

An INEC official told Reuters that "some result sheets and some ballot papers are reportedly missing. We want to track every (piece of) sensitive material, take inventory of what we have and what is missing".

And a government official said, "The legitimacy of the entire process will be questioned and the winner could lack the moral authority to superintend the affairs of the state."

One Western diplomat said: "Sensitive materials (ballot papers and results sheets) have been delayed in being distributed."

Nigeria is also dealing with pockets of instability. Throughout the day, authorities bolstered security in much of the country on the eve of the vote in Africa's largest democracy where past elections have been marred by violence, voter intimidation and ballot rigging.

Dozens of combat policemen and other security forces were deployed from police headquarters in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state on the country's northeast frontier that has been worst hit by Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State in West Africa Province.

INEC said voting to elect the country's powerful state governors were also to be delayed by a week, to Mar. 9.</s>ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria’s presidential election, which was due to be held on Saturday, has been postponed by a week, the chairman of the country’s electoral commission said hours before polls were due to open.

Addressing journalists in the early hours of Saturday, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman Mahmood Yakubu said the delay was needed to hold a free and fair election.

“The commission came to the conclusion that proceeding with the election as scheduled is no longer feasible. Consequently the commissioners decided to reschedule the presidential and national assembly elections to Saturday 23 February 2019,” he said.

President Muhammadu Buhari faces a tight election contest in Africa’s largest economy, top oil producer and most populous nation against the main opposition candidate, businessman and former vice president Atiku Abubakar.

The country’s presidential elections in 2011 and 2015 were also delayed over logistics and security issues.

Prior to the announcement there were statements commenting on concerns over the election.

An INEC official told Reuters that “some result sheets and some ballot papers are reportedly missing. We want to track every (piece of) sensitive material, take inventory of what we have and what is missing”.

And a government official said, “The legitimacy of the entire process will be questioned and the winner could lack the moral authority to superintend the affairs of the state.”

One Western diplomat said: “Sensitive materials (ballot papers and results sheets) have been delayed in being distributed.”

Nigeria is also dealing with pockets of instability. Throughout the day, authorities bolstered security in much of the country on the eve of the vote in Africa’s largest democracy where past elections have been marred by violence, voter intimidation and ballot rigging.

Dozens of combat policemen and other security forces were deployed from police headquarters in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state on the country’s northeast frontier that has been worst hit by Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State in West Africa Province.</s>Nigeria’s presidential and national assembly elections have been delayed by one week and will now take place on Saturday, February 23, authorities said.

“Following a careful review of the implementation of the logistics and operational plan, and the determination to conduct free, fair and credible elections, the commission came to the conclusion that proceeding with the election as scheduled is no longer feasible,” the chairman of Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, said at a news conference early Saturday local time.

“This was a difficult decision for the commission to take, but necessary for the successful delivery of elections and the consolidation of our democracy,” he said.

Polls were due to open at 2 a.m. ET Saturday, February 16.

Elections for governorships, state House of Assembly and area councils are on hold until March 9, the INEC said.

The lead-up to the elections has been marked by violence, prompting warnings from the British and US governments to say they would deny visas and likely prosecute those found inciting violence during the vote.

Two Nigerian electoral commission offices housing voting materials were burned down within the space of a week.

In the presidential election, Muhammadu Buhari, 76, of the All Progressives Congress party, known as the APC, is standing for re-election. He will be running against 71 other presidential candidates.

His main challenger is Atiku Abubakar, 72, of the People’s Democratic Party, or PDP. He is a business tycoon and former vice president.

The vote comes at a critical time for the country’s economy, a lynchpin of the region. The recent oil price crash sent Nigeria’s economy into turmoil when the price of a barrel plunged to $40 at its lowest from a high of $100, leaving the country’s major revenue source depleted.

An estimated 87 million Nigerians now live in poverty, the highest number of impoverished people in the world, according to The Brookings Institution.</s>ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria’s presidential election set for Saturday is now expected to be delayed in parts of the country, two diplomats and a government source said on Friday, citing difficulties in transporting electoral materials in some areas.

President Muhammadu Buhari faces a tight election contest in Africa’s largest economy, top oil producer and most populous nation against the main opposition candidate, businessman and former vice president Atiku Abubakar.

An official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) told Reuters that “some result sheets and some ballot papers are reportedly missing. We want to track every (piece of) sensitive material, take inventory of what we have and what is missing”.

The official said if the election was to be postponed, INEC would have to talk with the political parties first before making any pronouncement.

“A decision has been taken. We are going to address you soon,” Rotimi Oyekanmi, chief press secretary to the National Chairman of INEC told reporters.

A government official said “the legitimacy of the entire process will be questioned and the winner could lack the moral authority to superintend the affairs of the state”.

One Western diplomat said: “Sensitive materials (ballot papers and results sheets) have been delayed in being distributed.”

Nigeria is also dealing with pockets of instability. Throughout the day, authorities bolstered security in much of the country on the eve of the vote in Africa’s largest democracy where past elections have been marred by violence, voter intimidation and ballot rigging.

Dozens of combat policemen and other security forces were deployed from police headquarters in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state on the country’s northeast frontier that has been worst hit by Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State in West Africa Province.
Voting is delayed in Nigeria for a week, hours before polling was due to start because of violent incidents in the lead up to the election.