Nigeria, March 2 -- For the fifth time since 1999 when the fourth Republic began, Nigerians last Saturday went to the poll to elect a president who will lead the nation for the next four years.

The announcement of the presidential election result by the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Mahmood Yakubu, was almost halted by the protests of the leading opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). It accused the umpire of bias and complained of irregularities in the results announced by the electoral commission. The PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has rejected the result and said he would challenge it in court.

Mr Buhari came to power in 2015 on the tide of popular discontent against his predec...