Tinubu urges Nigerians to overcome 'partisan divide' and 'come together'

 

Nigeria's president elect received Wednesday (Mar. 1st) the certificate of return from the electoral commission chairman.

During the ceremony that took place in Abuja, Bola Tinubu collected the formal document confirming his victory and urged his fellow Nigerians to overcome any partisan divide.

"I (take) this opportunity also to again, to appeal to my fellow contestants to let us team up together. It is the only nation we have," he pleaded.

Bola Tinubu's Nigeria election win: The rigging claims of Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar

 

Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been declared the winner of Nigeria's fiercely contested presidential election but many, including opposition parties, have claimed the poll was rigged and a sham.

They have called for the election to be cancelled, alleging breaches of the Electoral Act and possible collusion by the Independent National Electoral Commission (Inec) to doctor the result in Mr Tinubu's favour.

The allegations have been denied by Inec and Mr Tinubu's party, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Nigeria's Bola Tinubu declared winner of presidential vote

 

Ruling party candidate Bola Tinubu was declared winner of Nigeria's presidential election early Wednesday and soon after thanked his supporters and appealed to his rivals who are already demanding a revote in Africa's most populous nation.

The announcement by election officials overnight was likely to lead to a court challenge by the second- and third-highest finishers in the weekend vote, Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi. Abubakar also finished second in the last vote in 2019, then appealed those results before his lawsuit ultimately was dismissed.

French President to tour four central Africa nations

 

French President Emmanuel Macron will next week undertake a four-nation tour of central African countries, as Paris seeks to counter growing Chinese and Russian influence in the region.

Macron is to visit Gabon for an environmental summit, followed by Angola, then the Republic of Congo, and finally the Democratic Republic of Congo.

His visits come as alarm grows in Paris over the growing role of Russia in French-speaking African countries, alongside a Chinese push for influence that has been apparent for some years.

Nigeria election 2023: Early results arriving

 

Early results have started to arrive from Nigeria's tightest election since the end of military rule in 1999.

Official results from the south-western Ekiti state show a clear victory for ruling party candidate Bola Tinubu in one of his strongholds.

Further results are expected shortly.

Following widespread delays and attacks on some polling stations on Saturday, voting was postponed until Sunday in parts of the country so final results will take some time.