Why INEC refuses to declare Buhari winner now

Although President Muhammadu Buhari has scored the highest votes in the 2019 presidential election polling 15,191,847 votes, INEC wil not declare himwinner yet.

The commission has asked for time to review certain aspect of the process prescribed by the electoral act.

His closest challenger and former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), polled 11,262,978 votes, the difference being about 4 milliom.

To be declared president-elect, aside winning majority votes, Mr Buhari also has to score 25 percent of votes in 24 states.

Again, INEC, also has to ensure that the total number of disenfranchised Nigerian voters is not more than the difference in votes between the two leading candidates.

In Rivers State alone, elections were not held in six local government areas which have over 900,000 registered voters. Elections were also not held or cancelled in several polling units across Nigeria including Akwa Ibom and Nasarawa states.

So INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, said the commission will go on a “short interlude” to review the various reports from states before deciding whether or not to declare a winner in the election.