One of the implications of vote-buying is that it legitimizes corruption and embezzlement of government reserves which in turn resulted in the people living in abject poverty and deplorable conditions: A report by the World Bank noted that the number of poor persons in Nigeria will rise to 95.1 million in 2022.
Vote-buying as an argumentative topic in the modern discourse on the sustainability of self-governing advancement in Nigeria is like an intrigue that’s gradually incapacitating electoral procedures and sabotaging the accomplishments of the electoral moderator in conducting complimentary, fair, and reliable elections in Nigeria.
It is a fact that vote-buying didn’t start today as It was replete during the Social Democratic Party presidential primary held in Jos in 1992; It was one of the justifications used by Babangida to justify the unjustified June 12 annulment. If the 1992 presidential election that’s inarguably the freest, fairest and the most credible in the history of Nigeria could be alleged to have been monetized what can one say of the elections that were conducted afterwards? However, this is not to say money and politics are separable, but following what the laws say on electoral spending should be encouraged by all.
Vote-buying took another dimension after the return to Democracy in May 1999, from voters, joyously taking pictures and making videos showing themselves while they collect money and food as a form of inducement from aspirants and party candidates as the case may be, to publicly demanding that their right[bribes] be paid before voting. It is as if there is no law against vote-buying whereas the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is clear enough about its prohibition of vote-buying in article 130 of the Electoral Act 2010, as amended, which states that:
A person who — (a) corruptly by himself or by any other person at any time after the date of an election has been announced, directly or indirectly gives or provides or pays money to or for any person for the purpose of corruptly influencing that person or any other person to vote or refrain from voting at such election, or on account of such person or any other person having voted or refrained from voting at such election, or (b) being a voter, corruptly accepts or takes money or any other inducement during any of the period stated in paragraph (a) of this section, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of N100,000 or 12 months imprisonment or both.5
Voters and vote Buyers despite the aforementioned article fail to refrain from buying and selling votes. Nonetheless, the Nigerian state is not the only country in the world that employ either food or money to fascinate the voters to get their votes as countries such as Great Britain, Argentina, India, and the United States of America also induce voters to earn their votes. A typical example is the election between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, however, is not as awful as the one in Nigeria which gradually derailed the expedition of democracies and in most cases led to the loss of lives and properties, political fluctuation, underdevelopment, deprivation, and terrible governance.
One of the implications of vote-buying is that it legitimizes corruption and embezzlement of government reserves which in turn resulted in the people living in abject poverty and deplorable conditions: A report by the World Bank noted that the number of poor persons in Nigeria will rise to 95.1 million in 2022. The number of poor people was 89.0 million in 2020 and would be 95.1 million in 2022. This would mean that 6.1 million more persons would have fallen beneath the poverty line between 2020 and 2022, a 6.7% increase. With the projected 2022 charts, the number of poor persons in Nigeria has had a four-year increase of 14.7% from the 2018/19 chart of 82.1 million to the projected 95.1 million in 2022, not also forgetting the report by Statista published by Doris Dokua Sasu in February 2022, that: ‘In 2022, the unemployment rate in Nigeria is estimated to reach 33 per cent: with more than 10 million out-of-school children, the highest in the world.
An office Holder that paid his way through to the office can not afford not to repossess all the money invested during the nomination of candidates, party-primary elections and campaigns; It is a business after all and the primary aim of any businessman is to make a profit, which on the other hand, hinders good governance and dividends of Democracy. Another implication of vote-buying breathes incompetent individuals into office thus far, making unjust laws, and bad economic policies for the people which drives the state backwards.
Vote-buying is a cankerworm and has eaten deep into the Nigerian polity making the illegal look legal. The electoral spending law couldn’t stop the two big political parties[People’s Democratic Party and All Progressive Congress] from spending more than the stipulated money in 2015 and 2019 respectively. As the 2023 presidential election approaches, there is a need for us to sensitise the public, especially at the moment, party Delegates to desist from selling their consciousness for money or food. No good candidate induces a delegate with money or food.
The Media and civil society organisations as advised by Freedom Onuoha & Jide Ojo should intensify voter education and enlightenment campaigns on the negative significance of vote-trading– especially on how it puts forward the expenses of elections, and promotes political corruption and undermines good governance. Although vote buying and selling in Nigeria is prohibited however, in my judgment, it is as if it does not as votes Buyers and vote Seller go about their businesses without the fear of being apprehended. On this note I advise the government to strengthen the police and other law enforcers so that they will be able to arrest lawbreaker(s) and take them to court if found guilty of the offence accused of, then prosecuted, to serve as deterrence to others that want to commit such crime.
Omojowo Ajosanmi
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