Nigerian writer, Chimamanda Adichie has written an open letter in The Atlantic titled "Nigeria's Hollow Democracy" addressed to the President of the United States, Joe Biden.
In the letter, she expressed her disappointment with the American President and the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, for congratulating the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, despite the alleged irregularities in the election process.
Adichie accused the American government of prioritizing stability over democracy in Africa, and criticized the U.S. State Department for congratulating Tinubu despite the complaints from Nigerians about the flaws in the election process.
She claimed that the election was imperiled not by technical shortcomings, but by deliberate manipulation.
Adichie urged President Biden to uphold the importance of a "global community for democracy" and stand up for justice and the rule of law. She also questioned why the United States would endorse a president-elect who emerged from an unlawful process, and accused the American response to the Nigerian election of being disingenuous and compromised.
Adichie suggested that the United States may have prioritized stability over democracy in Africa or may be focused on countering China's influence in the region. She warned that supporting undemocratic processes in Nigeria would not win the battle for influence in Africa and could lead to further frustration among young people in the country.
Recall that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Bola Tinubu of the All Progressive Congress (APC) the winner of the 2023 presidential election.
Tinubu polled a total of 8,794,726 votes to defeat his closest rival, Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), who scored 6,984,520 to emerge second.
