The re-election of president Olusegun Obasanjo is being rejected in the Moslem north. Not just among many of the voters up there, but also among religious leaders. There was voter fraud, but even with that, Obasanjo appears to have won a majority of the votes. Since independence, most of the nation's leaders (both elected and generals who took over by force) have come from the Moslem north. The Moslem candidate who lost to Obasanjo is a former general who once ran the country as a dictator (after a coup.) This cost him votes in the recent election. Political corruption is widespread in the country, with local political groups fighting each other for control, and the ability to loot local government  revenues. The local politicians have armed and unarmed thugs on their payroll to help with the process of molding public opinion.