The United Kingdom has congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari
on his victory at the presidential election.
This is coming from the UK Minister of State for Africa,
Harriett Baldwin, hours after the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC) declared the President the winner of the keenly
contested poll on Wednesday.
She said, “I offer my congratulations to President Buhari on
securing a second term as the Nigerian President.
“The UK is a long-standing friend and partner of Nigeria and the
Nigerian people, and a stable and prosperous Nigeria benefits
Africa and the world.”
The minister also commended the outcome of the election which
she said tallied with the civil society Parallel Vote Tabulation
process.
She advised Nigerians to trust the election and urged those who
feel aggrieved to seek redress through the legal process.
“The Nigerian people have demonstrated resilience and a
commitment to democracy,” Baldwin state, adding, “The result
declared by the Nigerian election commission is consistent with the
result obtained through the civil society Parallel Vote Tabulation
process. Along with our international partners, the UK believes the
Nigerian people can have confidence in the result.”
She added, “However, we also recognise that independent Nigerian
voices have expressed concerns about the conduct of the electoral
process, in particular logistics and results collation, and reports
of intimidation of election officials.
“We urge any party or individual who wishes to challenge the
process to do so peacefully and through the appropriate legal
channel and we encourage Nigerian authorities to examine all
allegations of wrongdoing carefully, and take the necessary action
against individuals found responsible.”
Baldwin further condoled with the families and friends of those
who lost their lives in election-related violence.
According to here, no one should die in the exercise of their
democratic rights.
The minister said the UK would continue to support Nigeria and
its civil society in drawing lessons from the elections and
strengthening its democracy.
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