Nigerian Presidential Primaries Heat Up

In the wake of ongoing violence carried out by the islamic extremists groups, the Nigerian Presidential aspirant and former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari issued criticism toward his political rival Jonathan Goodluck of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for his handling on domestic security issues within the country. 

In an interview with local Nigerian press, Muhammadu Buhari stated, “How this government, despite what it allocates to security, rushed to the National Assembly to seek a US$1billion loan to fight the insurgency.”

His comments coincide with Nigerian presidential primary elections, which will take place on Wednesday when Buhari will face off against former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who defected from the ruling PDP in February 2014, and is now seeking the All Progressives Congress (APC) nomination.

Representatives from across the country will meet in the capital city of Lagos this week, as the APC- a coalition of the country's four major opposition parties chooses its candidate to run for president in next year's elections.

During the APC presidential convention, the party is also expected to outline a coherent political policy platform. 

The national publicity secretary of the APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, stated during a press conference Monday that , “The APC as a party that is committed to seeing Nigeria leave its present sorry state and take its rightful position in the comity of nations, is set to ensure this change by presenting for election, credible and purpose-driven candidates that would drive the change at various levels of government.”

Both candidates have issued sharp criticisms of President Goodluck Jonathan's poor performance as head of state. particularly regarding his management of the economy, insecurity and its perceived inability to tackle corruption.

Meanwhile, last month, 130 representatives of the lower house, led by the speaker Aminu Tambuwal, signed a notice to commence an impeachment procedure against the president for alleged abuse of office.

Latest governance poll results released by NOIPolls for the month ofNovember 2014 revealed that 60% of adult Nigerians surveyed approved of the President’s job performance over the last month.