Five Reasons Why Jonathan Lost to General Buhari - BBC

Here are five reasons why the
opposition won:
1: Harder to rig
Past elections have been marred by serious
irregularities and suspicions of rigging. In 2007
observers said the presidential poll was not
"credible". In 2011 the vote was considered to
be better run but observers said that rigging
and fraud still took place.
This time the electoral commission took more
steps to prevent rigging, including new biometric
voters cards.
Also President Jonathan's party, the People's
Democratic Party (PDP), had lost control of some
key states which meant it could not control the
electoral process there.
2: Boko Haram and security
The Nigerian army has made some recent gains
against Boko Haram, but not enough to convince
Nigerians
The election took place against the background
of an Islamist insurgency in the north-east of
the country. The Boko Haram militant group has
killed 20,000 people and forced some three
million others from their homes and President
Jonathan was criticised for not getting to grips
with this.
The poll was delayed for six weeks to give time
for the security situation to improve, but even
though most areas controlled by Boko Haram
were recaptured, it seems to have come too
late for many people.
3: United opposition, crumbling PDP
The extra six weeks of vigorous campaigning by
the PDP was not enough to halt the slide in the
party's fortunes
The PDP has been described as an election-
winning machine. When it was created it united
a northern elite with leading politicians from the
south, but that alliance has broken up and the
party lost some key figures. Even former
President Olusegun Obasanjo came out against
Mr Jonathan.
At the same time, the opposition managed to
unite under the All Progressives Congress (APC)
banner. The last six weeks of desperate and
dirty campaigning, in which the APC responded
in kind, was not enough to turn the tide.
4: Economy
Nigeria's economy is growing but the wealth is
not being spread around
Nigeria is Africa's biggest oil producer and its
largest economy, but many fail to feel the
benefits with nearly half the population living
below the poverty line. Continued corruption is
seen as partly being to blame.
National income is due to grow by more than 5%
this year and next year, but people did not
seem in the mood to thank Mr Jonathan for this.
5: Time for a change
APC supporters chanted "change" wherever they
went and it seems to have caught the mood.
The PDP has been in power since the end of
military rule in 1999, and 2015 is the year that
Nigerians decided that someone else should
have a go at sorting things out.
President-elect Buhari now has to prove he
really can change things.
http://m.bbc.com/news/world-africa-32136295