Nigerians are heading to the polls this month. The election will take place on Saturday 25 February. The elections take place against a backdrop of numerous complex economic, political and security challenges. Rises in the cost of living are unprecedented and hurting the majority.
Critics and observers have argued that the urgency to address poverty, corruption, unemployment and other pressing social and political issues is lacking.
The frontrunners in the elections are are Bola Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the Labour Party and New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP).
Since the return of democracy in 1999, Nigeria’s huge youth population has made the headlines come election time and this election season is not different.
The campaign issues are similar to those that featured in the last presidential elections. These included violence and insecurity, a struggling economy, an end to endemic corruption, and a lack of infrastructure development, amongst others.
Nigeria is battling with slow economic growth and the state of the economy coupled with the high youth unemployment has negatively affected the current government’s image.
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