The Independent National Electoral Commission made the announcement five hours before the polls were due to take place on Saturday.”Proceeding with the election as scheduled is no longer feasible,” commission chairman Mahmood Yakubu said.
The presidential candidates have asked citizens to remain calm and patient.
Mr Yakubu said the decision to postpone the presidential elections was needed to ensure a free and fair vote.The elections are set to take place on Saturday 23 February.
Nigeria’s president and leading opposition candidate have appealed for calm after the shock move to delay elections for a week.
President Muhammadu Buhari said he was “deeply disappointed” but urged people to refrain from “civil disorder”. Main rival Atiku Abubakar called for patience but accused the administration of “anti-democratic acts”.
The two main groups, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), both condemned the move and accused each other of trying to manipulate the vote.
President Buhari, of the APC party, urged Nigerians to “refrain from civil disorder and remain peaceful, patriotic and united to ensure that no force or conspiracy derail our democratic development”.
In many cases the voters reacted with disappointment, frustration and anger.
The height of incompetence! You waited till 3am nigerian time to break a news as crucial as this? After 3 whole years which you had to plan. What a Joke!
— Femi (@femiakande_) February 16, 2019
You had 4 years and more than enough financing and you give us this.
The INEC of today is a huge disgrace and one of the institutions that’d need to be repositioned once a new govt takes over.
I never had faith in this current INEC Chair and he just justified my reservations.— Kachi Ben Nnagha (@deekaachii) February 16, 2019