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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 ABUJA 000787 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DOE FOR CAROLYN GAY 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KDEM NI ELECTIONS
SUBJECT: OBSERVATION OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS: REGIONAL 
PERSPECTIVE 
 
REF: A. ABUJA 771 
     ¶B. ABUJA 766 
     ¶C. ABUJA 746 
 
ABUJA 00000787  001.2 OF 005 
 
 
THIS MESSAGE IS SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED.  NOT FOR INTERNET 
DISTRIBUTION. 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY.  The April 21 presidential and National 
Assembly elections were marred with irregularities similar to 
those of the April 14 gubernatorial and state assembly polls 
(Ref. C).  However, in some instances, irregularities 
observed were significantly worse than the previous weekend's 
election.  Reprinted presidential ballots ordered following 
the April 16 Supreme Court decision restoring Vice President 
Atiku's candidacy did not arrive in Abuja until late 
afternoon April 20.  Mission observers report some locations 
received presidential ballots late on the 21st (delaying the 
opening of polls to as late as 1600 in some instances) and 
some never received ballots or other materials and no vote 
was held.  Polling stations across the country received 
insufficient numbers of presidential ballots, and the ballots 
which were received were not numbered and did not list 
candidate names nor photos.  They only showed party symbols. 
In some states, polling stations never opened in areas 
outside the state capital.  Mission observers estimate a 
turnout of 10-20 percent at polling stations that actually 
opened.   END SUMMARY. 
 
North Central Zone 
------------------ 
 
¶2. (SBU) Much like the country as a whole, observations in 
the north central zone ranged from a fairly organized, 
transparent process to disorganization and blatant fraud. 
There was sporadic violence in some areas, with at least one 
person killed in Benue state and more than a half dozen 
killed in neighboring Nassarawa state.  Mission observers in 
both Niger and Plateau states reported most of the election 
materials were delivered and voting took place in an 
environment of relative calm. In Niger state, voting was 
generally well organized, despite the fact that no Senate 
ballots were cast in the polling stations visited by Mission 
observers due to a lack of ballots for this race.  Many 
polling places had separate ballot boxes for each seat being 
contested. Niger state vote counts witnessed by Embassy 
observers were transparent. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Mission observers in Plateau state also reported a 
relatively orderly process, with polling stations well 
supplied and voting conducted in a relatively orderly 
fashion.  Mission observers noted some polling stations never 
opened; local contacts alleged these stations were located in 
opposition-controlled areas.  Observers visited a number of 
local government areas, including home to the deputy Senate 
President, a ruling party stalwart who lost in his bid for 
reelection. Voter turnout was light throughout the state. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Mission observers in Benue state reported a 
thoroughly disorganized and fraudulent process.  Mission and 
other international observers witnessed cases of ballot 
snatching, ballot box stuffing, intimidation, and delivery of 
voting material by PDP party agents (including the Governor's 
brother).  Many rural areas did not receive materials, and 
voter turnout was in the neighborhood of 10-20 percent where 
voting did occur. In many polling stations, despite the low 
turnout, mission observers noted vote tabulations indicating 
nearly 100 percent turnout. 
 
North West Zone 
--------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) The Mission fielded fourteen observers in Kaduna, 
Katsina, Sokoto, and Zamfara States.  For security reasons, 
Mission personnel were not deployed to Kano State. 
Throughout the North West, most polling stations opened 
between 1130 and 1400, though areas of Kaduna North opened as 
late as 1630.  Regardless of the late opening, polls closed 
between 1630 and 1800.  Angry mobs had gathered to protest 
the late opening in several towns in Katsina, Kano, and 
 
ABUJA 00000787  002.2 OF 005 
 
 
Kaduna North. Voting in Sokoto and Zamfara was reported to be 
calm throughout the day. Overall, voter turnout was low, due 
in part to high voter apathy.  We estimate that voter turnout 
averaged 10-25 percent where voting was held.  Domestic 
observer contacts in Kaduna South and parts of Katsina and 
Kano State report that no elections had taken place at all. 
 Mission observers report that most polling stations were 
managed by poorly trained and inadequate INEC staff and 
received insufficient materials, including ballots (no 
Senatorial ballots delivered in Kaduna State), ink pads, 
voters rolls, and tally sheets.  In Buhari's hometown in 
Katsina State, fewer than 50% of ballots were delivered for 
the amount of registered voters in Daura LGA, fueling anger 
at INEC officials there.  In fact, Buhari himself did not 
cast a ballot that day, as his name did not appear on the 
voters roll.  Women voter turnout was high or equal to men in 
Sokoto, Zamfara, and Kaduna North, but low in other areas of 
the zone. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Endemic underage voting was observed in Katsina, 
Sokoto, and Zamfara States.  At one station in Katsina 
metropolis, Mission personnel observed a group of irate 
children hound PDP party agents when they refused to pay them 
for casting a PDP vote.  Party agents and security service 
personnel were seen hovering around ballot boxes, noting for 
whom voters cast ballots.  Only PDP party agents were present 
at many polling stations in Katsina metropolis and Kaduna 
North.  Neither the privacy of balloting nor security of the 
ballot box was protected.  At most polling stations 
throughout the North West, the ballot count was methodical 
and orderly; however, the collation centers appeared tense 
and chaotic in Katsina.  Since most polling stations in 
Kaduna, Katsina, and Kano did not have tally sheets, results 
from these stations ran the risk of not being accepted at 
collation centers.  ANPP party agents present at polling 
stations in Katsina refused to sign result sheets at 
collation centers, decrying the results and electoral process 
there as fraudulent and opaque.  Also in Katsina, Mission 
personnel personally witnessed PDP party agents and INEC 
officials changing tally sheet results just 500 meters from a 
tabulation center. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Isolated incidents of elections-related violence 
were reported across Kaduna, Katsina, and Kano States.  In 
Kaduna North, Mission observers witnessed riots in and around 
INEC headquarters and other parts of Kaduna metropolis. 
Contacts also reported that rigging and ballot box stuffing 
were taking place at private residences and hotels in and 
around Kaduna, Katsina, and Kano city.  Mission contacts 
report that a PDP chieftain and former official of the Sabon 
Gari local government was arrested in Zaria on election day 
for illegal possession of ballot boxes. 
 
North East Zone 
--------------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) The Mission fielded seven observers in Borno, Gombe 
and Bauchi states.  Though polls in Maidugari opened by 
approximately 1100, polls in Gombe and Bauchi did not open 
until afternoon (sometimes as late as 1500).  A few rural 
polls were opened late in the afternoon in Borno state, but 
Mission and other international observers found no polls open 
outside the state capitals in Gombe and Bauchi states. 
Despite the late opening, polls in areas of Gombe state 
closed as early as 1800 and in Bauchi, which was under a 2000 
curfew, by 1900 (with some observed closing as early as 
1700).  The Borno State INEC office in Maidugari reported 
only 37 percent of needed presidential ballots were 
delivered, though they had held out hopes for more.  In 
Gombe, all polling stations visited by Mission observers 
lacked ballots for the House of Representatives.  Voter 
turnout was low in all three states, as large numbers of 
voters who had gathered as early as 0700 departed and did not 
return once ballots were received. 
 
¶9. (SBU) Mission observers did not directly observe fraud 
being perpetrated; however, observers did witness a polling 
station in Bauchi near the end of the day where polling 
agents were continuing to authenticate ballots with the 
 
ABUJA 00000787  003.2 OF 005 
 
 
official's stamp as they spoke to Poloffs, despite stating 
they expected no more voters.  Mission observers noted 
polling officials in one area of Gombe city who were handing 
out ballots without checking names against the voters 
registry.  In Maeltideba (outside Gombe city), residents told 
Mission observers an INEC person came earlier in the day with 
one box of ballots, allowed two people to vote, then 
announced voting had finished and left with the materials. 
Mission observers noted that given the quickest time observed 
of approximately 2-3 minutes processing time per voter (to 
show voters card and receive a ballot), even 150 voters per 
polling station would be an extremely liberal estimate -- and 
that would only apply to polling stations where voting took 
place. 
 
¶10. (SBU) The mood in polling stations across the North East 
was much more tense as people demonstrated considerably more 
frustration than during the April 14 elections.  People still 
in line by late afternoon had often stood since early 
morning.  Others simply gave up or did not come to vote at 
all, as evidenced by the larger number of stores and 
businesses open on April 21.  IRI observers reported unrest 
in northern Bauchi state as early as 1300.  At 1810, Mission 
observers at a collation center in Bauchi witnessed a group 
of 30 young men who stormed into a collation center to "check 
on the status of the count," shouting at officials that they 
would return. 
 
South East Zone 
--------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) In the South East region, the Mission fielded eight 
observers to four states: Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, and Enugu. 
Similar to the previous weekend, the polls opened late across 
the South East and in many areas, never opened at all.  Where 
voting occurred, turnout was observed to be less than fifteen 
percent, ballot boxes were generally not sealed, and many 
polling stations lacked or did not use voter registers. 
Observers also witnessed obvious intimidation and ballot box 
stuffing at some locations. 
 
¶12. (SBU)   Our observers in Abia visited four of the state's 
local government areas (LGAs) between 1000 and 1800 but never 
found an open polling station.  The National Assembly 
elections in Abia were all postponed because of printing 
errors on the ballots, and presidential ballots arrived in 
the state at approximately 1230 but LGAs did not start voting 
until after 1600.  Some voting took place in the state 
capitol Umuahia between 1630 and 1800, according to NDI 
observers.   USG observers were also unable to find a single 
open polling station in Anambra state, despite traveling from 
Awka to Onitsha and back again and stopping by some polling 
stations multiple times.  In several locations, angry 
potential voters told the USG staff to spread the word 
internationally that they had been disenfranchised.  However, 
in most of Anambra state voters appeared apathetic: people 
were working, shopping, and going about normal business and 
the crowds of people waiting to vote were smaller than the 
previous week. 
 
¶13. (SBU) Voting began in some parts of Ebonyi state as early 
as 1330, but in rural areas there were still no ballots late 
in the afternoon.  In areas where voting took place, many 
polling stations lacked official tally sheets to record 
results, ballot boxes generally were not sealed, and voters 
frequently lacked privacy.  Witnessed turnout was less than 
fifteen percent (at polling stations where voting occurred). 
In Enugu state, voting began in Enugu town and Nsukka around 
¶1530.  However, observers found polling stations that still 
had no election materials as late as 1730.  Many polling 
stations lacked voter lists and others which had lists never 
used them.  Election officials seem to be allowing anyone 
with proof of registration to vote. 
 
¶14. (SBU) There were polling stations in Enugu and Ebonyi 
where despite a late start, a relatively fair polling and 
counting process took place; however, observers also visited 
stations plagued by fraud and intimidation.  In Abakaliki, 
Econoff saw a ballot box containing a large clump of 
 
ABUJA 00000787  004.2 OF 005 
 
 
presidential ballots, apparently stuffed. At another station 
in Enugu town, the poll opened at 1455 but the ballot box was 
removed by soldiers at 1550 after only 40 of 1,800 voters had 
cast ballots.  Poloff witnessed youths working for the Enugu 
Secretary to the State Government forcibly removing a ballot 
 
SIPDIS 
box in Opi, while British observers saw books of ballots that 
had been pre-thumbprinted for PDP in Ayiere. 
 
South South Zone 
---------------- 
 
¶15. (SBU) The Mission fielded no observers in the South 
South, but remained in contact with other international and 
domestic observers and monitored radio broadcasts in the 
area.  Voting reportedly did not take place in most of the 
region.  Even in Edo State, where the April 14 election had 
gone somewhat smoothly, many polls never opened.  Observers 
say that they saw fewer than half the polling stations ever 
opened.  Those that did began balloting after noon and were 
plagued by a paucity of materials.  Voters were apathetic and 
observers and local monitors estimate less than 15 percent 
turnout where voting did occur. 
 
¶16. (SBU)  Throughout the rest of the region, virtually no 
voting took place.  Some observers report that more polling 
stations opened for the Presidential election than were 
observed the week before; however, they still estimate that 
less than 20 percent of the polling places opened in Delta, 
Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross Rivers states and less than 10 
percent of polling places opened in Bayelsa state.  The late 
arrival of voting materials to different areas in Cross River 
postponed the presidential and senate elections one day; the 
House of Representative election is scheduled to hold 
Thursday April 26.  Turnout was characterized as "extremely 
low" throughout the region and some observers thought that 
"10 percent turnout would be generous" for the few polling 
places that actually opened.  An opposition contact in Delta 
state said violence and massive rigging by the PDP on April 
14 resulted in low voter turnout and what he described simply 
as "surrender."  INEC staff were identified by locals as 
"known employees" of the government or the PDP. 
 
South West Zone 
--------------- 
 
¶17. (SBU)  The Mission fielded observers in Lagos, Ogun and 
Oyo states.  Many polls opened by 1000, while others opened 
as late as 1400 in Ogun state.   Most polling stations in 
Lagos State had sufficient ballots for the number of voters 
that came to cast ballots, though the ballots would have been 
insufficient if turnout had been higher.  Other locations 
received more ballots than they had registered voters; still 
others told observers INEC promised to deliver more ballots 
during the day.  Some polling stations lacked other supplies 
(such as cuticle marking pens) and/or failed to post voter 
lists.  In some places, poll workers called out voters' names 
from the voter registration list, which in Lagos and Ogun 
States were not ordered alphabetically or by voter 
registration number.  In Lagos, observers noted that voting 
officials manning late-opening polling stations appeared to 
use this technique to speed the process of distributing 
ballots.  Some cases of underage voting were observed. 
 
¶18. (SBU)  Observers noted low turnout and a range of 
irregularities including failure to ink fingers, failure to 
check names against the voter registration list, and party 
agents performing the work of INEC staff.  At one polling 
station in Oyo state, PDP officials ordered voters to leave 
after which Mission observers watched PDP agents and INEC 
workers fingerprint ballots and stuff them in the ballot box. 
 At another Oyo polling place, a Mission observer reported 
that there was no voter registration list and that all 
ballots had been pre-stamped for PDP.  In Ogun State, 
observers noted a polling station which had been open only 
one and a half hours had already processed 250 voters.  In 
another case, a polling station was observed to have opened 
at 1400 and closed at 1430, after having ostensibly processed 
600 voters.  In Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun State, 
observers spoke with a group of people who said they were 
 
ABUJA 00000787  005.2 OF 005 
 
 
boycotting the elections because the week before they had 
experienced intimidation by persons with guns and other 
weapons.  An EU observer corroborated this account, noting 
that the level of intimidation had caused her to return to 
her hotel.  Also in Ogun State, observers noted AC and blank 
ballots being counted for PDP during the vote tally.  Many of 
these PDP and AC ballots appeared to have the same round 
print mark which looked not like a thumbprint but more like 
the tip of a finger or a round stamp mark.  A DPA candidate 
told observers that his party was not on the ballot in three 
wards in Ogun State. 
 
¶19. (SBU) In Lagos State, there was considerable confusion as 
to whether voting should be conducted for the Senate race. 
Ballots were never delivered to many polling stations, but 
were delivered to others.  In one place where ballots for the 
Senate race had been delivered, persons claiming to "control 
the ward" said that voting for all three races should take 
place and dismissed postponement of the Senate elections as a 
rumor.  In another polling station, poll workers said an INEC 
official informed them the Senate elections had been 
postponed; however polling agents continued to hand out 
Senate ballots.  In another polling station, persons of 
unknown affiliation announced that Senatorial voting should 
not take place and poll workers should withdraw the ballots. 
 
¶20. (SBU) Observers noted that some polls closed as early as 
1430, while others remained open until the official 1700 
closing time.  Where observers watched the count, procedures 
were orderly.  Observers were unable to observe vote counts 
at collation centers in Ogun State, although they did hear an 
election official tell security guards to prevent observers 
and any non-INEC officials from entering the collation area 
after the arrival of vote tallies.  INEC announced victory 
for PDP in Ogun, Osun and Oyo States, and for AC candidate 
Atiku Abubakar in Lagos State. 
 
¶21.  (U)  This is a joint Embassy/Consulate cable. 
CAMPBELL