Africa ( Commonwealth Union ) _ In 28 states, new governors are being selected as the opposition continues to oppose Bola Tinubu’s election as president. In the midst of hostilities following last month’s contentious presidential election, millions of Nigerians returned to the polls for gubernatorial elections. Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa.
On Saturday, new governors will be chosen for 28 of Nigeria’s 36 states as the opposition continues to denounce the election of Bola Tinubu as the new president of the country’s governing party. The most populous country in Africa is electing hundreds of governors and members of the state legislature, with the race in Lagos, the hub of the economy, being especially heated.
In Nigeria, governors hold influential roles and some are in charge of state budgets that are larger than those of other African countries.Polling places were supposed to be open at 8:30am (07:30 GMT) and close at 2:30pm (13:30 GMT), though there are often delays and people in queue when the polls close should still be able to cast their ballots.
Armed security personnel were visible patrolling the streets of the election-affected regions on Friday. Nigeria has the largest economy in Africa and is one of the world’s top oil producers, but endemic corruption and poor governance, which frequently includes governors, have stifled the country’s development.The governors of Nigeria are given a great deal of authority by the law, but they are protected from prosecution for the entire four-year term with a two-term maximum.
Despite the governors’ authority, surveys have revealed that many people in the country of West Africa are not particularly interested in the election and performance of the governors, a development that experts say has an impact on the degree of accountability among the states.
The Independent National Electoral Commission of Nigeria has pledged to resolve issues that cropped up during the election last month, including the uploading of results and voting delays, which the opposition parties claimed led to voter disenfranchisement and result manipulation.
