Protests erupt in Nigeria over results of gubernatorial elections

By Olanrewaju Kola and Ibrahim Garba

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AA) - Protests and violence erupted in parts of Nigeria on Monday after the results of the March 18 gubernatorial elections were announced.

Tensions rose in Kano state after the electoral commission declared the opposition New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) the winner of Saturday’s polls.

Some protesters set fire to the home of a popular local artist for using his music to campaign for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), eyewitness Ahmad Abdullahi told Anadolu. The government immediately imposed a dusk to dawn curfew to curtail further violence in the state.

"The decision to impose the curfew is to prevent a breakdown of law and order following tensions generated from the collation of results of the governorship and state assembly elections,” the state Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Muhammad Garba, said in a statement.

In southeastern city of Enugu, protesters stormed the office of the electoral commission, alleging the nonuse of Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines designed to read Permanent Voter Cards and authenticate voters during voting in the area Saturday

Protests also erupted in north-central Nasarawa state and southern Rivers state as tensions built in areas earlier identified by the police as flashpoints of post-election violence.

The government in northwest Kaduna state announced the deployment of security personnel across the area to halt any violence.

"Security agencies are on high alert to contain threats to law and order throughout the state," said Samuel Aruwan, a senior official.

Dozens of people have been killed in post-election violence in Nigeria since 1999, when the country returned to a civilian government after two decades of military rule.