Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has issued a stark warning, declaring that Nigeria cannot genuinely be called a democracy as long as vote buying remains entrenched in its electoral system. The criticism came in response to the House of Representatives' recent deliberations on electoral reforms.
A Missed Opportunity for Root-and-Branch Reform
Obi expressed his disappointment in a statement posted on his official X (formerly Twitter) account. He revealed that Nigerians had anticipated strong legislative action from the lawmakers against the pervasive threat of vote buying, which undermines credible elections and national progress. However, this expectation was shattered when the House of Representatives declined to approve measures that would explicitly criminalize financial inducements during internal party primary elections.
"Any effort to stop vote buying must begin at the primaries," Obi asserted. He emphasized that without tackling the problem at its source, any subsequent measures would be superficial and lack the durability needed for lasting change. The House had recently considered bills linked to electoral reforms, including those pertaining to party primaries and campaign conduct. Yet, proceedings showed the lower chamber stopped short of outlawing inducements within party nomination processes.
The Systemic Failure and Its Corrosive Spread
Obi did not mince words, labeling the refusal to act as protection for a broken system. He argued that reforms introduced only at later stages of the electoral process are doomed if the very foundation—the candidate nomination process—remains compromised. "A democracy where votes are bought is not a true democracy; it is a criminal marketplace," he stated bluntly.
The former Anambra State governor also highlighted the dangerous trickle-down effect of this political malpractice. He noted that the culture of inducement has spread beyond formal politics, now infecting other areas of civic life such as town union elections, club leadership votes, association polls, and student union elections. Obi linked this widespread corruption directly to the example set by politicians who engage in electoral offences without facing significant consequences.
Enforcement Challenges and Future Hopes
Vote buying has been extensively documented in Nigerian elections by both domestic and international observer groups. Reports from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and civil society organizations following recent general elections consistently highlight the issue. While Nigeria's Electoral Act 2022 prohibits and punishes vote buying during general elections, enforcement has been notoriously weak, with very few high-profile convictions recorded.
INEC itself has admitted that policing voter inducement is exceptionally difficult, especially when transactions occur discreetly or away from polling units. Party primaries, which are crucial in determining candidates for the general elections, are largely regulated by the political parties themselves, with INEC playing a monitoring role.
The 2023 general elections were marred by widespread allegations of vote buying across several states, with security agencies confirming arrests in isolated cases. In recent months, INEC has renewed its call for stronger collaboration with law enforcement and the judiciary to ensure faster prosecution of electoral offenders.
Concluding his statement, Obi posed a poignant question about Nigeria's democratic future: "How long will we allow our society to be corrupted when the solution lies in addressing the roots of the problem?" His intervention underscores a growing public demand for substantive electoral reform that starts with cleaning up the party nomination process.
