The opposition party of the current government in Niger will not recognize the initial results of the presidential elections. This is despite the authority's claim that the election was within international standards.
According to Amadou Babacar Cisse, the spokesman for the COPA 2016 opposition coalition, they will not recognize their opponent's proclamation so far. The Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) was the one who announced the results. There was a total of 7.5 million eligible voters across the country into the Sahara desert where there is a growing terrorist attack from the jihadist of Nigeria, Libya, and Mali.
It will be the second term of President Mahamadou Issoufou who faces three main challengers in the election. He said that he is confident of a quick victory in the first round of the poll as per Yahoo.
But according to opposition spokesman, Cisse, they are ready to ask their supporters to resist the victory of Issoufou. He added that the results came in from fake polling stations because of the grave passivity of the CENI. Interior Minister Hassoumi Massaoudou denied the allegations though, claiming the elections met international standards. He added that if they lose then they will leave but if they win, then they will definitely stay.
A stronghold of supporters for the jailed former prime minister Hama Amadou in the capital of Niamey said that he got the majority of votes in the first round. According to Fox News, he has been detained since November for his alleged involvement in a baby-trafficking scheme which he has denied.
The former leader had been campaigning behind bars. As reported by My Fox Boston, the opposition even announced that Amadou will not participate. They said that the CENI is responsible for validating election results and are clearly working with the current government to ensure its victory.
CENI has so far announced only 10 percent of the more than 300 voting precincts which makes it hard to create a definite conclusion. The African Union deployed 40 observers and said that it was satisfied with how the organization handled the election despite some delays. Niger is considered as one of the poorest countries in the world despite its abundance of uranium, oil, and coal.
