Leading Pro-democracy group in Nigeria: HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) said the recent peaceful, transparent, free and fair presidential election leading to the 44-year-old Mr. Bassirou Diomaye Faye emerging as Senegal’s President-elect after an unprecedented victory at the presidential election on Sunday, March 24, 2024, shows Senegal as the true bastion of democracy in Africa which Nigeria the supposed giant of Africa should learn from.

Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, National Coordinator, who signed the statement stated that the seamless manner the election was conducted in Senegal without any untoward incidents of votes rigging, stealing or burning of polling papers and shooting of opposition politicians that we witness during Nigeria’s elections, shows that Nigeria has a long way to go to achieve a peaceful,  free and fair election.

The Rights group praised the electoral umpires of Senegal for conducting the presidential election without fear, favour or letting themselves to be pocketed by the incumbent president unlike in Nigeria whereby electoral officials are bought and pocketed by highest bidders in any electoral contests.

HURIWA recslled that the provisional results showed the opposition candidate, Faye had about 53.7%, while former Prime Minister and ruling coalition’s candidate, Amadou Ba, secured 36.2% based on tallies from 90% of polling stations in the first-round vote, according to the electoral commission. All the defeated candidate in the election have congratulated the youngest President-elect out of modern Africa.

Giving his first acceptance speech, Faye said, “In electing me, the Senegalese people have decided on a break with a past. I promise to govern with humility and transparency.”

Faye, the 44-year-old politician is set to become the fifth President of Senegal on April 2, 2024, when he will be sworn in.

HURIWA in a media statement also stated that the Nigerian Court system including the Appeal Court and the Supreme court of Nigeria which always become very afraid to maintain her independence and often entertains post-presidential litigation in Nigeria in favour of whomsoever is manipulated into office by the ethically challenged independent National Electoral Commission as winner, should better make arrangements to travel to Senegal to understudy how the Senegalese Constitutional Court stood its ground and denied the incumbent president of Senegal his undemocratic and unconstitutional wish to postpone the election.

“If it were in Nigeria, the Supreme Court will collapse like Court jesters before the incumbent president and grant the president his wish to postpone the election no matter how hurtful it is to the constitution of Nigeria.  The Courts of Nigeria which are the election tribunals should go for quick trainings by the Senegalese Constitutional Court on how to exercise and insist on its independence as a separate arm of government. Greed, avarice and corruption are the social evils that often compromise Nigerian elections.