Adedokun Waliyu 
Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has decried the negative influence of money in the electoral process and enjoined security intelligence and other public institutions involved in the electoral process to ramp up measures to curb the menace in the forthcoming elections.
Prof. Yakubu gave the charge at a One-Day Summit to address the influence of money in the electoral process ahead of the 2023 general election, describing the reported buying of Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) from indigent Nigerians as diabolical.
He said the negative role of money in elections goes to the very heart of democracy as it destroys the very basis of democratic elections which is that citizens should freely choose those who exercise power on their behalf.
“It renders the emergence of the right candidates for positions extremely difficult, undermines fair electoral adjudication, and destroys the professional and independent conduct of INEC officials and other public agencies involved in elections.
“Even more worrisome is the high prospect that criminal money may find its way into our elections through money laundering.
Above all, the pernicious use of money tremendously increases the likelihood of election violence due to a “win at all costs” mentality among contestants who would have invested a fortune in the election”, he posited.
The INEC chairman explained that the commission has adopted various measures to reduce the influence of money including the use of smartphones and photographic materials around the voting areas as well as the reconfiguration of Polling Units to bring the ballot boxes closer to the voting cubicles, all geared to discourage the exposure of the marked ballot papers by voters to vote buyers.
While commending the concerted effort by the Police, EFCC, ICPC and other public institutions to stem this ugly spectre in the nation’s democratic evolution, he called for greater collaboration among the institutions to apprehend and prosecute perpetrators of vote buying.
Prof Yakubu also insists that citizens must resolve not to give in to the criminal intent of desperate politicians who may want to mortgage their future, pointing out that INEC cannot achieve success without the cooperation of citizens.
“The Commission is aware that legal provisions and the actions of the agencies are critical but will not be enough to completely root out the deep-seated cancer of corrupt money in our elections. The concerted actions of citizens are crucial.
“Citizens must reject inducements to sway their votes through vote buying. They must also engage effectively in stopping the negative use of money in our electoral process generally by reporting cases to INEC and other agencies.
“In addition, civil society organisations should make this a major plank of both their pre-election and election observation activities. Financial institutions, religious organisations, traditional institutions, the media, civic bodies and, above all, citizens must also join in this fight”.
Yakubu pointed out that despite INEC’s best efforts desperate politicians will try to subvert the process, even as he assured all Nigerians that the determination of the election body to leave a legacy of the credible poll come 2023.
“We believe that every conscientious Nigerian wants us to do so. As a Commission, we harbour no illusion that it is going to be easy to root out the negative influence of money on our elections, but we are determined to tackle it.
“We fully realise that today’s initiative will not go down well with people who may not be committed to the growth of our electoral system and the consolidation of our democracy. We expect them to fight back. There will be both covert and overt pressure, countervailing actions and even threats by these vested interests.
” I wish to reiterate that our loyalty is to Nigeria and our allegiance is to Nigerians. We are committed to working with the collaborating agencies to see that this initiative succeeds in the 2023 General Election and beyond.
“Let me reiterate the Commission’s resolve to continue to employ both technology and administrative measures to strengthen Nigeria’s electoral process. I assure Nigerians that preparation for the 2023 General Election is on course and we shall not be swayed from that course.
“Be assured that the BVAS has come to stay. Electronic transmission of results has come to stay. Public display of Polling Unit results through the IReV has come to stay. With today’s initiative, the elimination of the negative use of money in our electoral process will be tackled head-on.” he assured.
Stakeholders that attended the occasion sponsored by McArthur Foundation include the Nigeria Police and other security and safety agencies, the ICPC, the EFCC, the NBC and ARCON others include the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON), the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), political parties, civil society organisations, trade unions, professional bodies, financial institutions amongst many others .
