Nigeria poll mired in controversy

By Alex Last
BBC News, Lagos

The government and electoral commission say voting was a success

It was no great surprise that Umaru Yar'Adua was declared the winner of Nigeria's presidential election.

He is the governing party candidate. The electoral commission said he won by a landslide - leaving the opposition leader, Muhammadu Buhari, with just 18% of the vote.

But the election is mired in controversy.

Polling stations opened late or not at all, there was a shortage of ballots, and then in many places there was violence and vote-rigging.

Turnout was low. The government and the electoral commission say it was a success, but there has been a barrage of criticism.

The opposition says it was a charade. So too do Nigerian and international election observers.

"These elections have not lived up to the hopes and expectations of the Nigerian people and the process cannot be considered to have been credible," said chief EU observer Max van den Berg.

So what now?

The opposition says it will challenge the whole election in court, but that could take too long as the new president is due to be sworn in by the end of May.

Mr Buhari said it was now "up to the Nigerian people to accept slavery or stand up for their rights".

Election 'game'

There may be some protests, and there is already pressure on the governing party's candidate to reach out to the opposition.

People in Nigeria know the risks of political protest

After all, the new president's legitimacy has been seriously questioned. The opposition leaders have major support in Mr Yar'Adua's own regional constituency of northern Nigeria.

But talk of reconciliation may not be enough to appease them. And it might upset outgoing President Olusegun Obasanjo and his People's Democratic Party (PDP), men who helped Mr Yar'Adua to victory.

There may be real anger in Nigeria but there is resignation as well - people know the risks of protesting.

Many in Nigeria feel disconnected to the political process, not least because traditionally Nigerian presidents or their governments do little for the people. It is seen as a game among the elite.

The fact is this kind of election was no surprise, though perhaps the sheer incompetence, clumsiness and openness of the rigging made people more angry than usual.

This flawed election was a symptom of Nigeria's political system - a system driven by money - and the prize was control of the country's huge oil wealth.

With so much at stake, so much invested in candidates, no-one wanted to take the chance of losing.