The Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria has urged the Federal Government and concerned citizens to persuade the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to hold the presidential and governorship elections on the same day. The council fears that staggered elections could spark violence. Currently, the presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled for February 25, 2023, while the governorship and state House of Assembly elections are set for March 11, 2023. The council warns that separate dates may create unrest, especially as some desperate politicians appear poised to incite chaos and disrupt the electoral process.
At a press conference in Kaduna on Sunday, the council’s Secretary General, Nafi’u Baba‑Ahmed, disclosed that a security source had warned the council that security agencies might struggle to contain the expected political violence. Baba‑Ahmed expressed concern that the second round of voting could be jeopardized by violence stemming from the first. “There is a high probability of the second election not holding because of the violence from the first election. It is not going to be feasible,” he said. He emphasized that the country’s precarious security situation, coupled with admissions from security agencies that they are overstretched, heightens the risk that desperate politicians will trigger violence to influence the outcome.
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