President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday said he has won the presidential election even as voting had barely commenced.
Mr. Buhari and wife, Aisha were the first to cast their votes polling centre No. 003 in Daura at about 8 am and by 8.06am, the duo had completed their accreditation.
While Mrs. Buhari was the first to cast her ballots, President Buhari took a little more time before he came out of the booth to drop his ballots.
In a funny twist, the president was found peeping through the booth where his wife was thump printing her ballot, apparently to see who she voted for.
Shortly after casting his vote, journalists met him and sought his opinion about the election.
“So far so good, Nigerians are behaving themselves,” he said.
Asked if he is hopeful, he responded, “Very hopeful indeed.”
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But when asked whether he would concede defeat if his lost the poll, he said, “I am going to congratulate myself. I am already the winner.”
In a swift reaction, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mike Ozekhome condemned the president for claiming victory even before the election got underway.
“He has never ever said he will concede defeat. He has always said he cannot be defeated but he knows that is unconstitutional and against the provisions of the Electoral Act,” he said.
“He believes that the rigging machine he has put in place will work but God will disappoint him. We have never had a president who would say that in the history of this country.”