The UK said on Thursday it is concerned about voter suppression and post-election violence in the Nigerian election.
“What we are probably most concerned about is voter suppression, trying to prevent people from coming out to vote. Perhaps what worries us most is the post-election violence, as we saw when Jonathan came to power…” said British High Commissioner to Nigeria Catriona Laing.
Addressing the press at his residence in Abuja, he affirmed the need for the leaders of various political parties to deter their supporters from such violence, adding that if any of the supporters feel that the election was stolen and that their candidate should have won , there is a risk. of violence.
“It’s really important for Nigeria’s democracy that people respect the results… and if for any reason you feel that the elections in your area were not credible or transparent, there is a process and that is the court,” he said.
Emphasizing the powers of the courts, Ms. Laing noted the need for judges to be free from pressure, to act impartially and objectively review the evidence and rule in accordance with the rule of law.
“Judges must be seen to act fairly and impartially,” he added.
The absolute foundation of democracy is the rule of law and the rule of law gives people confidence, said Ms Laing.
Despite these concerns, he said the UK was very confident that Nigeria’s electoral commission, INEC and security agencies were well prepared for the election.
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“Nigeria should be very proud as it has maintained democracy since 1999. This is an achievement not to be underestimated considering the region it is in, with many countries experiencing coups, presidents refusing to step down…” , said.
There are 14 candidates running in the Nigerian presidential election with four presidential candidates considered to be front-runners. The four frontline candidates are tinubou ball of the APC, atiku abubakar of the DPP, Pedro Obi of the Labor Party and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the NNPP.
The West African country will hold its presidential elections on February 25 and state elections on March 11.