Nairobi News

ChillaxGeneralMust ReadNewsWhat's Hot

Uhuru in Nigeria to observe elections

By Wangu Kanuri February 21st, 2023 2 min read

Former Kenya president Uhuru Kenyatta has landed in Nigeria to observe the country’s polls slated for February 25, 2023.

Mr Kenyatta was recently appointed by the African Union (AU) to oversee the elections and will lead a 90-member team.

According to the African Union Commission (AUC), the 90 members of the short-term election observation are drawn from AU member states.

They include representatives of election management bodies and civil society organizations, independent experts, women, and youth, as well as individuals from AU organs, notably, the Pan African Parliament and Permanent Representatives Committee.

Since leaving office in September 2022, Mr Kenyatta has been instrumental in peacekeeping in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Ethiopia.

Meanwhile, 18 candidates are campaigning to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari who is stepping down after eight years.

However, there are only three candidates who have a realistic chance of winning as per the opinion polls.

The trio is Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi.

Abubakar will be contesting for the sixth time having been unsuccessful in the previous elections.

The winning candidate must obtain the highest number of votes nationwide and more than a quarter of ballots cast in at least two-thirds of Nigeria states.

Else, will be a second-round run-off between the top two candidates within 21 days.

Nigerians will also vote for their representatives in the National Assembly.

There are 469 legislators made up of 109 Senators and 360 members of the House of Representatives.

Nigerians will also elect their 28 state governors on March 11, 2023.

Nigeria is by far Africa’s largest economy, powered by oil and human resource. The country has however been bogged down by poor management of resources leading to frequent power cuts and oil shortages, lack of jobs, corruption and insecurity fronted by the Boko Haram menace.

Also read: Moses Kuria: Why I moved my office to Two Rivers Mall

Viral video shows public apprehending ‘medicine thief’ at Kisii Hospital

Lawyers Ahmednasir, Ombeta discredit shortlisted candidates for CAS positions