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From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
A youth group, Committee of Youth on Mobilization and Sensitization (CYMS), has entered into partnership with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to monitor the coming general elections with focus on vote-trading (vote-buying and selling).
The youth evaluation, monitoring and mobilization body explained that it has secured the support of the EFCC to deploy machineries across locations that are notorious for vote-buying during elections.
Director General of the Organization, Chief Obinna Nwaka, told journalists at a press conference in Abuja, on Thursday, that the growing culture of vote-trading is doing a great harm to Nigeria’s electoral system, hence the urgent need to put a stop to it.
He said: “On this general election, we are looking at the collective strength of the young people who are the determinants of the election, and also the instrument of carrying out unpatriotic and undemocratic activities by the politicians especially vote-buying, violence and thuggery following collective voter strength of the youths.
“We have been charged and determined to be used only as the instrument of positive socio-economic development for our nation. In this regards, we are reaffirming our support for the EFCC in the fight against corruption and also joining force with them to say no to vote-buying, to avoid trading of our future, international embarrassment especially now that foreign observers are on standby watching.
“In achieving this, following our collaboration with the EFCC, we have deployed and commenced training of our vote-buying tracking and policing volunteers across the country. They would work in synergy with security agencies for enforcement in the field, which shall be followed with an official report to the EFCC for prosecution of individual or candidates involve in the act.”
He commended the the presidential candidates for signing the peace accord and suggested an integration of vote-buying into the next process with the participation of the EFCC to reawaken the consciousness of office of the President since vote-buying forms major reason for bad governance.
He assured the young voters who constitute larger percentage of eligible voters that after the 2023 presidential and national assembly political armageddon, they shall all have reasons to smile and Nigeria shall remained united.”
Chief Nwaka noted that as one of the accredited domestic observers to monitor the coming general elections, they have deployed their members/volunteers across the states of the federation as stationary observers to carefully oversee the entire process from polling units, collation centres until the final declaration of the elections.
He made reference to INEC data which indicated that 15,331 contestants would be running for various election positions under 18 political parties in 8,809 wards across the 774 LGAs.
Similarly, approximately 93,469,008 registered voters would cast their votes in the forthcoming elections, with Lagos state having the highest total registered voters, while Ekiti state has the lowest.
Meanwhile, the representative of the EFCC, Aisha Mohammed, in her remarks, noted that vote-buying is an economic crime, hence the EFCC is ready to work with partners to track and prosecute anyone found to engage in vote-buying in the coming elections.
She confirmed that EFCC has deployed its officials across the country to monitor the election exercise, and ensure that vote-traders are arrested and prosecuted.
Photo caption
Chief Obinna Nwaka (on red cap) during the press conference.
