Polls: World leaders thumb-up for Nigeria

■Congratulate Buhari, hail Jonathan, INEC

World lead­ers yesterday hailed the out­come of the presidential elections in Ni­geria.

They expressed satisfaction and excitement over the calm with which all the stakehold­ers, particularly the two major contenders, President Good­luck Jonathan and the winner, General Muhammadu Buhari accepted the result.

Outcome of polls demonstrate maturity of democracy in Nige­ria – African Union

The Chairperson of the Af­rican Union Commission, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma has expressed satisfaction at the recent official announcement of the results on the elections in Nigeria.

She congratulated presi­dent-elect, General Muham­madu Buhari for his victory. According to her, the outcome of the elections clearly demon­strates the maturity of democ­racy not only in Nigeria but on the Continent as a whole.

The Chairperson expressed her appreciation to President Goodluck Jonathan for gra­ciously accepting the results of the elections. She also con­gratulated all the other candi­dates for participating in this democratic electoral process.

Zuma hopes that Nigeria will be united in facing the challenges of stability, secu­rity and development in their country and continue their role as one of the locomotives for Africa’s socio-economic de­velopment.

US look forward to working with Buhari –Obama

Commends Jonathan

United States President Barack Obama has com­mended President Goodluck Jonathan and President-Elect Muhammadu Buhari for their public commitments to non-violence throughout the cam­paign.

In a statement made avail­able to Daily Sun by the U.S. Consulate General in La­gos yesterday, Obama said President Jonathan placed his country’s interests first by conceding the election and congratulating President-Elect Buhari on his victory.

The statement read in part: “I look forward to work­ing with President Jonathan throughout the remainder of his term, and I thank him for his many years of service and his statesmanlike conduct at this critical juncture.

“I urge President-Elect Bu­hari and President Jonathan to repeat their calls to their sup­porters to continue to respect the election outcomes, focus on unifying the country, and together lead Nigeria through a peaceful transition.

“Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commis­sion (INEC) and its Chairman, Attahiru Jega, deserve special recognition for what indepen­dent international observers have deemed a largely peace­ful and orderly vote.

“I commend INEC for its extensive efforts to increase the credibility and transpar­ency of the electoral process. Looking ahead to the guber­natorial elections on April 11, it is imperative that national attention turn to ensuring iso­lated logistical challenges are overcome and peace is pro­tected, even in the most hotly contested races.

“On behalf of the American people, I extend congratula­tions to the people of Nigeria and to President-Elect Buhari and look forward to continu­ing to work with the newly-elected government on our many shared priorities.”

Conduct of election in Nigeria exemplary –South Africa’s oppo­sition party

South Africa’s official op­position has congratulated Ni­geria on the outcome of polls and Muhammadu Buhari on his election as President.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) believes the election is significant as it is the first time in Nigeria’s history that an opposition party has demo­cratically taken control of the country from the ruling party.

This signals the first demo­cratic transition of govern­ment in Nigeria in the last 16 years, Stevens Mokga­lapa, DA Shadow Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, said. “The DA has long held that the undemocratic installation of any government should not be tolerated by the people of any particular nation,” he said.

He described the conduct of the elections in Nigeria as exemplary. “This (Wednes­day’) morning’s announce­ment is welcome news and the DA hopes that this will be the case for Nigerian gen­eral elections to come and that other African nations marred by election irregularities can aspire to make this progress in future.”

This is a good sign of a maturing democracy and we trust that this democratic practice will continue to be further entrenched in Nigeria and throughout the rest of Af­rica, said Mokgalapa.

We’re proud of Ni­geria, Jonathan –Mo Ibrahim

The Founder of African Leadership Prize, Mo Ibrahim expressed excitement over the success of the presidential election in Nigeria, particu­larly the acceptance of defeat by President Jonathan.

A statement issued read: “The news from Nigeria today is wonderful. Africa’s larg­est country has concluded a peaceful election process. Fur­thermore, the incumbent has already gracefully conceded and congratulated his succes­sor, a first for Nigeria and a benchmark for other African countries to follow.

“Today, we Africans are all proud of Nigeria and Presi­dent Jonathan. Thank you Mr President. If you are seeking a legacy, you have definitely achieved it.”

A truly historic mo­ment for Nigerian de­mocracy – UK PM

British Prime Minister Da­vid Cameron in a statement congratulated General Mo­hammadu Buhari for winning the election.

“I send my warmest con­gratulations to General Buhari on being elected as Nigeria’s next President. This elec­tion has been a credit to the Nigerian people and a truly historic moment for Nigerian democracy. The UK remains a steadfast partner for Nigeria as it realises its potential as Af­rica’s economic powerhouse and works to tackle terrorism in the region,” the statement said.

A testament of ma­turity of Nigeria’s de­mocracy –UN boss

United Nations Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon has congratulated President-elect Muhammadu Buhari and called on all Nigerians to ac­cept the outcome of the elec­tions.

“The Secretary-General talked to President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and Major General (Rtd) Muhammadu Buhari. He congratulated Pres­ident-elect Buhari and com­mended President Jonathan for his leadership throughout the electoral process and his statesmanship in upholding the democratic process,” said a note released by Mr. Ban’s spokesman’s office in New York.

“The Secretary-General be­lieves the successful conduct of these polls is a testament to the maturity of Nigeria’s democracy,” the statement added.

Mr. Ban also thanked the Independent National Elec­toral Commission (INEC) for organizing and carrying out the elections in a professional manner under challenging cir­cumstances.

He also appealed to the Ni­gerian people to address any complaints they may have through existing legal and constitutional channels.

The UN chief also said that he hoped the same democratic spirit will prevail in the con­duct of the Governorship and State House of Assembly elec­tions on 11 April.

Transition to new government must stay peaceful –UK Foreign Secretary

British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has congrat­ulated both President Good­luck Jonathan and President-elect, General Mohammadu Buhari over the outcome of the elections.

He urged the two leaders to ensure that the transition to new government remains peaceful. The statement read: “Three decades after seizing power in a military coup, Bu­hari has become the first Nige­rian to oust a president through the ballot box, putting him in charge of Africa’s biggest economy and one of its most turbulent democracies. Jona­than called Buhari on Tuesday to concede defeat and issued a statement urging his support­ers to accept the result.

“I congratulate Muham­madu Buhari on his election victory … and also President Goodluck Jonathan for the statesmanship he has shown in delivering free and fair elec­tions and accepting the result. It is now important for both parties to ensure the transition to a new government remains peaceful.”

Today Nigeria can show the world it’s major democracy –Ex- French PM

Former French Prime Min­ister Laurent Fabius in his con­gratulatory message described the General Muhammadu Buhar’s victory as victory for the people of Nigeria who af­firmed their attachment to de­mocracy and their confidence in the future, by refusing to allow themselves to be intimi­dated by terrorists.

“Today, Nigeria can show the world that it is a major democracy. It is a source of pride for the population and a source of satisfaction to Ni­geria’s partners. The Indepen­dent Electoral Commission has done an excellent job. We welcome the spirit of respon­sibility demonstrated by the political leaders and pay trib­ute to the action of President Goodluck Jonathan.

“I hope that President Bu­hari’s term of office will pro­vide an opportunity to further strengthen the friendly rela­tions between our two coun­tries and to put an end to Boko Haram’s terrorist activities. We also hope that Nigeria will be able to continue its remark­able economic growth, in the interest of the continent’s pros­perity,” the satement said.

Trumph for Africa –Ghanaian presidentGhanaian President and Chair of the Economic Community of the Economic Commu­nity of West African States (ECOWAS), John Dramani Mahama, has hailed the out­come of Nigeria’s presidential election as a triumph for the new Africa that is emerging.

He commended President Goodluck Jonathan for his “political maturity and states­manship”, describing his call to President-elect Buhari as “a mark of courage and a respect for the will of the Nigerian people.”

Also, the flagbearer of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo, has congratulated Buhari and Nigeria. “Through the peace­ful exercise of their sovereign and democratic right to elect their own leaders, the people of Nigeria have strengthened the frontiers of democracy for all other African countries to emulate,” he said.