Voters in Nigeria will elect a new leader Saturday after President Muhammadu Buhari's final term ends, with 18 candidates vying to lead a country facing a series of struggles -- the newest and most pressing being a shortage of cash.
Three front-runners have emerged, including the ruling party's Bola Tinubu and the main opposition's Atiku Abubakar. Peter Obi, a third-party hopeful who has been favoured in most polls, has broken the usual cycle of two-candidate races.
Here are things to know about the cash crisis in Africa's largest economy and how it could affect the election:Authorities are struggling to replace Nigeria's old currency with new notes, the first time in nearly 20 years that the naira is being redesigned. As a result, many people have been unable to withdraw their money from banks.
"It is affecting us does anyone still have the cash to buy things? It has put everybody into confusion," Okpe said.The central bank says the state-run company that is printing money has capacity to create enough banknotes but has accused politicians of hoarding the money for their own use and to influence the election.Larger-domination 1,000 naira , 500 naira and 200 naira notes are being switched out with redesigned cash.
Hassan Idayat, who leads the Center for Democracy and Development, Nigeria's largest democracy-focused group, said the lack of access to cash has slowed down preparations for election monitoring because workers have been left stranded. There are concerns the cash crisis could lead to a delay in the vote if the election commission can't handle logistics like paying workers on time -- a possible replay of 2019 when logistical challenges postponed the election. The one before that -- in 2015 -- also was pushed back.The currency crisis has led to incessant attacks on banks and forced many businesses to close as more people prioritize buying food with the little money they have.
Many voters in Nigeria don't participate in elections because they "have lost faith in government and they don't feel voting would change the quality of leadership," said Cynthia Mbamalu with YIAGA Africa, a nonprofit promoting electoral reforms in Nigeria.It is a high-stakes vote not just for Nigeria but also for its West African neighbours in a politically unstable region stemming from an unusually high rate of military coups.
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