2011 Elections begin in Nigeria; heavy security, clashes and fears of rigging.

Nigeria tightened security and shut its land borders on Friday ahead of the start of a landmark election period to choose a new legislature, president and state governors over three successive weekends.

Authorities announced a reshuffling of state police commissioners ahead of Saturday’s parliamentary polls, while areas at risk of violence took precautions, with mosques in central Nigeria installing metal detectors.

Land borders in Africa’s most populous nation and largest oil producer closed at noon and were to reopen Sunday morning, a statement from the interior minister said. Vehicles were also to be restricted on roads on voting day.

Mobile phone signals were not functioning properly in various parts of the country and flights from the main commercial city of Lagos to the capital Abuja saw major delays, though it was unclear if they were linked to the election.

The national police chief announced the redeployment of commissioners, and one vice presidential candidate running for an opposition party questioned the timing.

“The posting is to position the commissioners of police for effective performance of their duties during the forthcoming general elections,” police said in a statement.

The election period has been seen as among the most important in Nigeria’s history, serving as a test of whether it can organise a credible ballot after a series of deeply flawed and violent polls.

President Goodluck Jonathan is the favourite in the April 9 presidential poll, with his main challenger seen as ex-military ruler Muhammadu Buhari. Governorship and state assembly elections will take place on April 16.

The ruling Peoples Democratic Party has won every presidential vote since Nigeria returned to civilian rule in 1999, but there are signs each of the three upcoming elections could be more competitive than in past years.

A recently installed electoral commission headed by a respected academic has raised hopes that the vote will be better conducted this time. Jonathan has repeatedly promised a free and fair election.

The commission has done away with an old electoral list littered with false entries and created a new one by taking electronic prints of every potential voter before issuing them a card.

Fola Adeola, the vice presidential candidate for the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria party, told AFP in the interview he was “reasonably satisfied” with the work of the electoral commission.

But he said he had concerns about whether other institutions were interfering in the elections, questioning why soldiers were being deployed on election day and the timing of the redeployment of police commissioners.

He agreed with the deployment of soldiers where violence has occurred, but not throughout the country.

“We’re worried about this intrusion by people who are not saddled constitutionally with the responsibility for conducting the elections,” he said.

There have been outbursts of violence in the run up to the polls, including bomb blasts and attacks on political rallies.

In the volatile central city of Jos, which has been for years hit by clashes between Christian and Muslim ethnic groups, mosques installed metal detectors for Friday prayers.

On Thursday, two bombs were discovered and defused at a rally attended by thousands in support of Buhari in his home state of Katsina in northern Nigeria, his campaign said. Smith is AFP correspondent/Nigeria/West Africa

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