Boko Haram Attacks Nigerian Voters
Local Editor
Boko Haram fighters attacked poll stations in northeast Nigeria and a governor demanded elections be canceled in an oil-rich southern state Sunday as the count started for a presidential election too close to call.
Two electoral workers were killed earlier in Boko Haram's campaign to disrupt the elections, Chairman Attahiru Jega of the Independent National Electoral Commission declared.
Voting continued in certain areas on Sunday after technical glitches with new biometric card readers prevented some people from casting ballots on Saturday.
The high-stakes contest to govern Africa's richest and most populous nation had come down to a critically close contest between President Goodluck Jonathan and former military dictator Muhammadu Buhari.
Results were expected by late Monday. If there was no clear winner, a runoff must be held.
Suspected Boko Haram extremists attacked polling stations and destroyed election material in two northeastern towns Sunday then advanced on Bauchi city, according to fleeing residents.
Soldiers engaged them in heavy gunfire, and a jet fighter patrolled skies above the city, they said.
Police spokesman Haruna Muhammad said security forces had halted the convoy of 10 vehicles holding "unidentified gunmen" at Dindima village, 10 kilometers [6 miles] from Bauchi.
But gunshots erupted in Bauchi before nightfall Sunday, and authorities declared a curfew.
Muhammad said the gunmen attacked polling stations in Kirfi and Alkaleri towns earlier in the day.
Boko Haram extremists killed at least 41 people, including a legislator, and scared hundreds of people from polling stations in three states in the northeast on Saturday.
On Sunday, thousands took the streets of the state capital of Port Harcourt to protest alleged killings of opposition campaign workers and voting irregularities. Police in riot gear and armored cars moved in but the demonstration ended peacefully.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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