Egypt's current account gap narrows, but overall BoP records deficit    Egypt's PM reviews debt reduction strategy, eyes more private investment    Egypt hosts international neurosurgery conference to drive medical innovation    Egypt, India discuss expanding industrial, investment partnerships    World Bank proposes Egypt join new global health initiative    Egypt's EDA discusses Johnson & Johnson's plans to expand investment in local pharmaceutical sector    I won't trade my identity to please market: Douzi    Sisi sends letter to Nigerian president affirming strategic ties    Egypt welcomes 25-nation statement urging end to Gaza war    Egypt, Senegal sign pharma MoU to unify regulatory standards    Egyptian pound ticks down in early Tuesday trading    Famine kills more Gaza children as Israel tightens siege amid global outrage    Kuwait's Crown Prince, Egyptian minister discuss strengthening cooperation    Egyptian Drug Authority discusses plans for joint pharmaceutical plant in Zambia    Egypt's FM seeks deeper economic, security ties on five-nation West Africa tour    Two militants killed in foiled plot to revive 'Hasm' operations: Interior ministry    Egypt foils terrorist plot, kills two militants linked to Hasm group    Egypt, Somalia discuss closer environmental cooperation    Egypt exports 175K tons of food in one week    Giza Pyramids' interior lighting updated with new LED system    Egypt's EHA, Huawei discuss enhanced digital health    Foreign, housing ministers discuss Egypt's role in African development push    Korea Culture Week in Egypt to blend K-Pop with traditional arts    Egypt, Uruguay eager to expand trade across key sectors    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    Egypt's Democratic Generation Party Evaluates 84 Candidates Ahead of Parliamentary Vote    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Nigeria's Buhari wins second term as president
Published in Ahram Online on 27 - 02 - 2019

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari won a second term at the helm of Africa's largest economy and top oil producer, the electoral commission chairman said on Wednesday, following an election marred by delays, logistical glitches and violence.
He defeated his main opposition candidate Atiku Abubakar, a businessman and former vice president. Buhari secured 56 percent of votes, compared with 41 percent for Atiku, a candidate for the People's Democratic Party (PDP).
Buhari faces a daunting to-do list, including reviving an economy still struggling to recover from a 2016 recession and quelling a decade-old Islamist insurgency that has killed thousands of people in the northeast, many of them civilians.
Addressing supporters at the campaign headquarters of his All Progressive Congress (APC) party in the capital Abuja, he promised to tackle these issues.
"The new administration will intensify its efforts in security, restructuring the economy and fighting corruption," Buhari said after being declared the winner. He urged his supporters "not to gloat or humiliate" the opposition.
A message on Buhari's Twitter feed showed a picture of him waving to supporters and a simple message "4+4" as he embarks on his second four-year term.
The president won by 3.9 million votes, having garnered 15.2 million to Atiku's 11.3 million. The election turnout was 35.6 percent, the electoral commission said, which compared with 44 percent in the 2015 presidential election.
"Muhammadu Buhari of the APC, having satisfied the requirement of the law and scored the highest number of votes is hereby declared the winner," Mahmood Yakubu, chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), told election officials and reporters in the early hours of Wednesday.
Buhari's supporters gathered at the party's headquarters to celebrate, many of them holding flags and dancing.
"As a youth of Nigeria, I believe this is the way forward for this country and for my generation and that is why we choose to bring him back for the second time," said Juwarat Abubakar, a Buhari supporter.
Osita Chidoka, a representative of the PDP and its defeated candidate Atiku, repeated the party's stance that it does not accept the election result.
"We will explore all options including the belief that the legal process in Nigeria is one of the ways to resolve issues," he said.
Buhari's party has said the opposition was trying to discredit the returns from Saturday's election.
The accusations have ratcheted up tensions in a country whose six decades of independence have been marked by long periods of military rule, coups and secessionist wars.
Observers from the Economic Community of West African States, the African Union and the United Nations appealed to all parties to await the official results, expected later this week, before filing complaints.
The candidate with the most votes nationwide is declared the winner as long as they have at least one-quarter of the vote in two-thirds of Nigeria's 36 states and the capital, Abuja. Otherwise there is a second-round run-off.
Buhari secured enough votes to meet both requirements.

Marred by violence
Analysts had forecast a tough race for Buhari, but his comfortable victory capped a remarkable turnaround.
Buhari, 76, took office in 2015 and sought a second term with pledges to fight corruption and overhaul Nigeria's creaking road and rail network.
Atiku, 72, had said he would aim to double the size of the economy to $900 billion by 2025, privatise the state oil company and expand the role of the private sector.
Voting took place after a week-long delay which the election commission said was due to its inability to get ballots and results sheets to all parts of the country.
The event - Africa's largest democratic exercise - was also marred by violence with at least 47 people killed since Saturday, according to the Situation Room, a monitoring organisation linking various civil society groups.
Some deaths resulted from clashes between groups allied to the leading parties and the police over the theft of ballot boxes and allegations of vote fraud.
Police have not yet provided official casualty figures.
In his address, Buhari said he was saddened by the loss of lives during the elections and commended Nigeria's security agencies for their work "as severely overstretched as they are."
More than 260 people have been killed since the start of the election campaign in October. The toll so far is lower than in earlier elections, but the worst violence occurred previously only after results were announced.
The vote was also affected by problems with smart-card readers that authenticate voters' fingerprints. That meant voting in a small number of precincts was put off to Sunday.
U.S. observers said the week-long delay in holding the election damaged public trust in the process and probably reduced Saturday's voter turnout, while the European Union said the vote was hit by "serious operational shortcomings".


Clic here to read the story from its source.