Lagos, Nigeria (CNN)Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said he had ordered the military and law enforcement officers to be ruthless with those involved in election fraud following the postponement of the country's general elections.
"I really gave the military and police orders to be ruthless," Buhari said. "I want Nigerians to be respected, let them vote whoever they want across the parties."
Buhari spoke Monday in Abuja, the country's capital, at an emergency meeting called by his ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).
He added: "I'm going to warn anybody who thinks he has enough influence in his locality to lead a body of thugs to snatch ballot boxes or disturb the voting system, will do so at the expense of his own life."
Photos: In photos: Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari arrives for an anti-corruption summit in London in May 2016.
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Photos: In photos: Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari
Before he was Nigeria's President, Buhari was an officer in the country's army. Here, he stands next to Saudi Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani, center, and Swedish King Carl Gustaf during an OPEC summit in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1977.
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Photos: In photos: Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari
As an army general, Buhari gained power in Nigeria after a coup in 1983. He was the country's head of state until 1985, when another coup forced him out.
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