Nigeria orders closure of universities ahead of general elections

Abuja, Nigeria | Xinhua | Nigerian authorities on Thursday ordered the closure of all universities by Feb. 22 ahead of the country’s forthcoming general elections starting Feb. 25.

The National Universities Commission (NUC), Nigeria’s regulatory agency for universities, said in a statement that the directive followed an order by Minister of Education Mallam Adamu Adamu, enabling students in the most populous African country to fully participate in the constitutional exercise.

Consequently, academic activities across the universities will be suspended for three weeks and due to be reopened on March 14, said Chris Maiyaki, deputy executive secretary of the NUC, in the statement.

While the presidential election and elections for the country’s bicameral legislature will be held on Feb. 25, governorship and state legislature elections will be held on March 11, according to an official timetable set by the Independent National Electoral Commission, Nigeria’s electoral body.