By Maryanne Awuya
Ahead of the Ekiti governorship election, the Executive Director of the Peering Advocacy and Advancement Centre in Africa (PAACA), Ezenwa Nwagwu, says vote buying and other electoral offences continue to thrive in Nigeria because offenders are rarely punished.
Speaking during a press briefing on Wednesday in Abuja attended by Persecondnews correspondent, Nwagwu said findings from PAACA’s pre-election survey showed that many Nigerians already understand that practices such as vote buying, voter intimidation and ballot manipulation are wrong and should attract punishment.
“Addressing vote buying cannot rely on voter education alone. It requires visible enforcement, protection of whistleblowers and clear demonstration that electoral offences carry consequences,” he said.
He, however, questioned the readiness of institutions to enforce electoral laws effectively, stressing that voter education alone cannot stop electoral malpractice without visible punishment for offenders.
“Accountability must be visible, swift and impartial if citizens are to trust that the law means what it says.”
Nwagwu called on INEC, the Nigeria Police Force and other security agencies to prosecute electoral offenders swiftly and impartially to restore public confidence in the electoral process.
The survey also revealed low youth participation in elections despite high social media engagement, while older voters remain more politically active.
According to him, voters are becoming more issue-focused, with security, job creation, electricity and infrastructure ranking as top concerns ahead of the election.
He urged political parties and candidates to focus on practical solutions instead of hate speech and personal attacks.
On security, Nwagwu said there were no major reports of inter-party violence so far, but called for increased vigilance and better training of security personnel on electoral laws ahead of the poll.
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