Presidential candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC), General Muhammed Buhari (rtd), said in London on Thursday that his party would resist any further delays in the elections.
Buhari also said the party would take the government to court if the election commission chief is forced out.
Nigeria’s general elections were shifted from the earlier date of February 14 to March 28 by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the advise of the country’s security chiefs, but the opposition believes the commission was prodded by President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.
INEC said it had been told by the military it could not guarantee security due to an offensive against Islamist militant group Boko Haram.
Nigeria’s government has said there will be no more delays.
The vote pits incumbent Goodluck Jonathan of the PDP against former military ruler Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the most hotly contested election since the end of military rule in 1999.
“It is in our collective interest that the postponed elections will be held on the scheduled date, that they should be free and fair, and that their outcome should be respected by all parties,” Buhari said in a speech in London.
“Any form of extensions under whatever guise is unconstitutional and will not be tolerated,” Buhari was quoted to have said in a Reuters report.
The decision to postpone was widely viewed as INEC yielding to pressure by the PDP and local media have reported mounting pressure on INEC chairman Attahiru Jega.
“Jega was appointed constitutionally,” Buhari told reporters after giving his speech. “Let the president’s supporters react (within) the constitution of the country. If they react unconstitutionally we’ll take them to court.”
The vote is another big test for Africa’s most populous country, whose 170 million people are split almost evenly between Christians and Muslims.
Security has become a major election battle ground following the Boko Haram insurgency, which is battering Nigeria with almost daily attacks, and over the past five years has killed thousands and displaced 1.5 million.
A former military ruler, Buhari is hoping his strongman reputation will resonate with voters disheartened by Jonathan’s failure to get the insurgency under control during his five years as president.
“Boko Haram has certainly put Nigeria on the terrorism map,” Buhari said, noting that he would equip soldiers better and increase intelligence to choke off Boko Haram’s supply of recruits and funding.
Another priority was to tackle corruption, he said.
Graft scandals, most recently a claim that between $10-20 billion owed to state coffers by state oil firm NNPC were not remitted, have fuelled public anger. Jonathan authorised a forensic audit of the company on March 12 last
