Chimamanda Adichie Criticizes US President Biden’s Congratulatory Message to Nigeria’s President-Elect

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, a prominent Nigerian novelist, has criticized President Joe Biden of the United States of America for sending a congratulatory greeting to Bola Tinubu, the “president-elect” of Nigeria.

On Thursday, Adichie wrote an open letter to President Biden asserting that by congratulating Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in a presidential election that was “deliberately manipulated,” Biden is undermining America’s purported commitment to democracy.

Adichie wrote that the INEC’s declaration of Tinubu as the winner of the February 25 presidential election was invalid because the election was tainted not by technical errors, as the INEC claimed, but by the electoral umpire’s deliberate manipulation of the results.

Adichie’s letter reads:

“Since the end of military rule in 1999, Nigerians have had little confidence in elections. To vote in a presidential election was to brace yourself for the inevitable aftermath: fraud. Elections would be rigged because elections were always rigged; the question was how badly. Sometimes voting felt like an inconsequential gesture as predetermined “winners” were announced.

A law passed last year, the 2022 Electoral Act, changed everything. It gave legal backing to the electronic accreditation of voters and the electronic transmission of results, in a process determined by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The chair of the commission, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, assured Nigerians that votes would be counted in the presence of voters and recorded in a result sheet and that a photo of the signed sheet would immediately be uploaded to a secure server.

When rumours circulated about the commission not keeping its word, Yakubu firmly rebutted them. In a speech at Chatham House in London (a favourite influence-burnishing haunt of Nigerian politicians), he reiterated that the public would be able to view polling-unit results as soon as they are finalised on election day. Nigerians applauded him. If results were uploaded right after voting was concluded, then the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), which has been in power since 2015, would have no opportunity for manipulation. Technology would redeem Nigerian democracy. Results would no longer feature more votes than voters. Nigerians would no longer have their leaders chosen for them. Elections would, finally, capture the true voice of the people. And so trust and hope were born.

By the evening of February 25, 2023, that trust had dissipated. Election workers had arrived hours late, or without basic election materials. There were reports of violence, of a shooting at a polling unit, and of political operatives stealing or destroying ballot boxes. Some law-enforcement officers seemed to have colluded in voter intimidation; in Lagos, a policeman stood idly by as an APC spokesperson threatened members of a particular ethnic group who he believed would vote for the opposition.”

Adichie claims that INEC chairman Mahmood Yakubu, despite his promises of a free and credible election, prematurely declared Tinubu the victor without looking into widespread accusations of voting irregularities. She argued that the lack of judicial response to concerns of documented obvious manipulations demonstrated that the elections were not only rigged but also an insult to the intelligence of Nigerians.

She said, “Most egregious of all, the electoral commission reneged on its assurance to Nigerians. The presidential results were not uploaded in real-time.”

“Voters, understandably suspicious, reacted; videos from polling stations show voters shouting that results be uploaded right away. Many took cellphone photos of the result sheets. Curiously, many polling units were able to upload the results of the house and senate elections, but not the presidential election.”

“As vote counting began at INEC, representatives of different political parties—except for the APC—protested. The results being counted, they said, did not reflect what they had documented at the polling units. There were too many discrepancies.”

Adichie then criticized the United States government, stating it was alarming that the United States Department of State congratulated Tinubu and called the poll a “competitive election” that “represents a new period for Nigerian politics and democracy.”

“American intelligence surely cannot be so inept. A little homework and they would know what is manifestly obvious to me and so many others: The process was imperilled not by technical shortcomings but by deliberate manipulation.”

Adichie added, “I hope, President Biden, that you do not personally share this cordial condescension.” She urged Biden to maintain his stance on the necessity of a true democracy, noting that applauding Tinubu would be endorsing the illegal process that produced him as president.

“You have spoken of the importance of a “global community for democracy,” and the need to stand up for “justice and the rule of law.” A global community for democracy cannot thrive in the face of apathy from its most powerful member.

“Why would the United States, which prioritises the rule of law, endorse a president-elect who has emerged from an unlawful process?

“This Nigerian election was supposed to be different, and the U.S. response cannot—must not—be business as usual.

“Congratulating its outcome, President Biden tarnishes America’s self-proclaimed commitment to democracy. Please do not give the sheen of legitimacy to an illegitimate process. The United States should be what it says it is.”