The history of elections in Nigeria since the return of democracy in 1999, cannot be completely told without dwelling on some issues that threaten the electioneering process. Without prejudice, more than 20 years down the road, the issue of vote buying has posed a big challenge to the sustainability of credible elections in the country. The prevalence of vote buying is worrisome and requires attention with a view to stemming its impact on our future elections.

Vote buying is generally known as an economic exchange in which voters are paid to cast their votes for a candidate or a political party. It can be done in different ways depending on the sophistication of the buyer and the seller. It could be by giving financial or material incentives from political parties or candidates to persuade voters to vote in a certain way. Political parties and their candidates through their representatives distribute money and food items to voters to influence their decisions during the elections. For others, it could be ‘see and buy’ which is the language used to demand that voters display or use their phones to snap their ballot papers in order to get paid afterward.

The Ekiti governorship election which held in June this year was reported by many as a free ground for vote buying. The Centre for Democracy and Development in its post-election reports said it witnessed 41 cases of vote buying in six local governments during the election. Other multiple reports also documented that big political parties paid voters between N5,000 and N10,000, while the small political parties went for N1,000 to induce them. Although, cases of vote buying were not as visible and brazen in the Osun gubernatorial elections which held in July this year, but it nevertheless took place.

Political analysts and observers have identified vote buying as a barrier to free and fair elections in Nigeria. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has consistently condemned it and often threatened to prosecute culprits but very few instances of this have happened. Recently, the electoral umpire announced that it will be tracking politicians’ financial expenditures, to look for suspicious operations that could lead to vote buying, even before the election.

Another factor that may help mitigate the spread in the 2023 election is the recent redesign of the Naira and limitations placed on the volume of money individuals and corporate organisations could withdraw from the bank at any given time. A lot of people believe that given the timing of the redesigning exercise, it may have to do with helping to frustrate politicians who may want to trade in votes during the 2023 elections.

The question is: Are there laws against transactions on votes in the country? Or are the laws silent about vote buying? What does the law say about vote buying? What can be done about political antics to deceive the electorate into vote buying?

What the Law Says About Vote Buying

The existence of law is a deterrence to vices such as vote buying. The Electoral Act (2022 Amended) identifies vote buying as part of the offences against the electioneering process in Nigeria. Describes Section 121, articles A, B C, and D of the Electoral Act 2022, bribery, and payment for votes as grievous offences, in which culprits would face the consequences of either 12 months imprisonment or payment of a fine hundred thousand Naira.

The Act quotes: “person who does any of the following—

(a) directly or indirectly, by his or herself or by any other person on his other behalf corruptly makes any gift, loan, offer, promise, procurement or agreement to or for any person, in order to induce such person to procure or to endeavour to procure the return of any person as a member of a legislative house or to an elective office or the vote of any voter at any election;

“(b) upon or in consequence of any gift, loan, offer, promise, procurement or agreement corruptly procures, or engages or promises or endeavours to procure, the return of any person as a member of a legislative house or to an elective office or the vote of any voter at any election

“(c) advances or pays or causes to be paid any money to or for the use of any other person, with the intent that such money or any part thereof shall be expended in bribery at any election, or who knowingly pays or causes to be paid any money to any person in discharge or repayment of any money wholly or in part expended in bribery at any election.

“(d) after any election directly, or indirectly, by his or herself, or by any other person on his or her behalf receives any money or valuable consideration on account of any person having voted or refrained from voting, or having induced any other person to vote or refrain from voting or having induced any candidate to refrain from canvassing for votes for his or herself at any such election, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a maximum fine of N500,000or imprisonment for a term of 12 months or both.

(2) A voter commits an offence of bribery where before or during an election directly or indirectly by his or herself or by any other person on his or her behalf receives, agrees or contracts for any money, gift, loan, or valuable consideration, office, place or employment, for his or herself, or for any other person, for voting or agreeing to vote or for refraining or agreeing to refrain from voting at any such election”

Speaking to the issue, Mr. John Olonade, senior partner at the Olusegun Olonade and Co told NDR that despite the law, enforcement is still missing. According to him, vote buying has become a communal entity and the legal implication against it should be more pronounced than it is in Nigeria. He prescribed that a more practical way should be initiated to serve as a deterrence as envisaged by the law.

“There is no specificity to the offence of vote buying as regards penalties and this is one of the problems militating against its enforcement. Nevertheless, those who engage in vote buying and selling stand the risk of bearing the full brunt of the law if caught. One way I believe the offence of vote buying can be halted to its barest ebb is through deterrence. Our laws lack enforcement because everybody thinks since no one has been caught, nothing will happen.

“The fangs of our law enforcement officers must reach the ‘big players’ in the electoral space who influence the choice of voters in their favour with money and influence. Political parties who are found guilty should lose their license to contest elections. The stricter the penalty, the more adherence.”, Olonade added.

Citizens Must Be Proactive Against Vote Buying

Cynthia Mbamalu, the Program Director of YIAGA Africa pointed at lack of credibility and transparency as the sources of vote buying in the country. With the influx of corrupt practices in the electoral process in Nigeria among stakeholders and INEC officials in the past, she noted that people began to lose trust in their voting process. She added that since the narrative began to change among INEC officials, politicians have now imbibed the culture of inducing voters to their side.

She described vote buying as a menace that undermines the country’s electoral voting system and democracy. “I feel vote buying undermines our votes, because elections should be based on freedom to choose our leaders. But if we choose based on money given, it means our freedom of choice has been undermined and watered down. It also undermines our electoral democracy, because the idea of democracy is that as citizens, we come together and decide who leads us and for who has performed poorly, we vote them out so elections do not become the process of who has the money which undermines democracy.

She proffered voters education and enforcement of the law as the only way to mitigate vote buying in the coming polls. Citizens must be sensitised and be proactive against initiators of vote buying. Mbamalu charged the people to work with law enforcement agencies to be on their toes to arrest and prosecute the culprits of vote buying.

“To mitigate vote buying, we cannot overemphasise voters’ education, civic education, and general education against vote buying. We need to talk to the mind of the people because freedom begins from the mind and until we begin to act like free people our political class will see us as pawns they play as they like so we need to come out as free people by asking the right questions and to educate people to free their minds to stop thinking that they have no other options than to vote the person, even when the person cannot lead us well.

“The other part is enforcing our law; the new electoral law provides provides clear provisions for election bribery and corruption which encompasses everything we see including vote buying. So, security agencies, the electoral commission have an important role to play in the pre-election to arrest people who are moving around with money that is inducing voters. It is against our law. If there are high numbers of arrests and people being prosecuted for vote buying, it will clear these occurrences”

For Austin Aigbe, the Senior Programme Manager at the Centre for Democratic Development, vote buying has bastardised the country’s electoral system and it contributes largely to the bad governance in the country. He suggested that the citizens should be proactive in eradicating vote buying at their polling units. He added that the government and the security agencies have to be united to combat the menace of vote buying in Nigeria.

“The current government, political parties, and candidates must openly denounce vote buying. We need a citizenry that understands that selling their vote is inimical to Nigeria’s development. Beyond those there should be prosecution, Community must call out vote buyers and denounce them communities must become the police at the polling units. There should be citizen policing, anybody caught buying votes gets arrested and hand them over to the police. If the police are the ones perpetrating the act, make noise and call the highest order of the police.