Nigeria election body to comply with presidential candidate ruling
The News Nigeria’s electoral commission will obey any court ruling on whether the main challenger to President Bola Tinubu is eligible to contest January’s presidential election, its chairman said, potentially handing the judiciary a key role in Africa’s biggest poll.
Key points
- The View From London Nigeria’s net direct investment inflows have improved significantly since Tinubu took office in 2023 and, in recent years, the nation has received credit rating upgrades.
- Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is set to appeal last week’s high court ruling that invalidated his candidacy.
- Tinubu won the 2023 election with 36% of the vote with Atiku coming second with a 29% share.
The chair of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Joash Amupitan, speaking at the Chatham House think tank in London, said the body would be constitutionally “obligated” to “obey every court order” if the appeal fails.
Additional details
- Credibility test Bukola Idowa, executive director of civil society group Kimpact Development Initiative, warned any impression that the electoral process was opaque would undermine the validity of the vote.
- In a tacit acknowledgment of the criticism aimed at him over the higher cost of living, last month Tinubu said the country would shift its economic policy goal from administering “emergency treatmen t ” to delivering shared prosperity.
- Notable Nigerians have limited confidence in the credibility of the upcoming elections, according to polling firm Afrobarometer which found fewer than four in 10 people it surveyed believe the poll will be free and fair.
- INEC’s position adds to uncertainty around the vote in Africa’s top crude oil producer with less than 10 weeks until polls open.The commission is currently embroiled in more than 300 legal cases related to local elections, Amupitan said, adding that unresolved disputes could complicate its preparations for the forthcoming polls.
- “The macroeconomic backdrop for these elections are probably the strongest that we’ve seen in a very long time,” said Yewande Sadiku, senior investment banker, international, at Standard Bank.
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