Dozens reported killed in Nigeria poll violence, counting under way

11:05 • 25.02.19
Event

The violence during Nigeria's delayed presidential and legislative polls has claimed at least 27 lives and injured several others, an NGO closely following the election said, according to Aljazeera.

On Sunday, the Election Network group said the outbreak of violence was "worrying" and the authorities had been warned about the risk as another civil society group said the death toll could be as high as 35.

"Prior to the polls, we tracked 251 election-related deaths and circulated it to the relevant stakeholders, so the warning signals are there but nothing was done about it," Election Network lead strategist Adewunmi Emoruwa said.

"[The] government must now show strong will to prosecute [the] agents responsible for the violence, otherwise we might witness a resort to self-help by citizens, which could potentially escalate the situation and lead to more deaths post elections," he added.

Violence affected areas in the country's restive northeast prior to polling on Saturday.

There were explosions on the polling day in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, which has come under repeated attacks by the Boko Haram.

Residents of Geidam in neighbouring Yobe state were forced to flee their homes into the bush before polls opened.

Some ballot collection centres in southern Nigeria were attacked overnight as results trickled in.

Buba Galadima, spokesman for the main opposition People's Democratic Party's presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, was taken away by unidentified men on Sunday afternoon and his whereabouts are unknown, according to Michael Olayanju, Galadima's personal assistant.

"We don't know where he is and we don't know the mission of those that have taken him away. There is no word until now," Olayanju told Al Jazeera.

 

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