The British Government has
frowned at the alleged vote-buying, which marred the recent Ekiti State
governorship election.
The British High Commissioner to
Nigeria, Paul Arkwright, described vote-buying as a form of electoral
misconduct like rigging and ballot stuffing.
He stated this while addressing
journalists shortly after a meeting with the Chairman of the Independent
National Electoral Commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, in Abuja on Friday.
He said, “I was there in Ekiti to
monitor elections and I heard a lot of reports of alleged vote buying and we
are convinced that some vote buying went on. I condemn it. Vote buying is
illegal; it is against the law, it is just as vote rigging, it is just as bad
as ballot stuffing.
“We cannot make a distinction
when all these activities are illegal so I condemn that. What are we going to
do about it? Well we just had a meeting with the chairman of INEC, we have been
talking about public awareness and how the political parties themselves can
take responsibility for condemning this action and not continuing it.
“We do hope that 2019 will be
free, fair, credible and of course, peaceful elections.”
The British envoy, however,
commended INEC for the conduct of elections in recent times, saying the UK
government had faith in INEC and its leadership.
He added, “I think the election
process itself went well, the materials were there, the security forces kept
their distance and did manage to keep a peaceful election and we are seeing
progress in how INEC is carrying out each election. So, we have confidence in
INEC and the chairman.
“The UK has been a very strong
supporter of INEC and together with the USAID, we are spending about $60m over
a six-year period in support of deepening democracy in Nigeria.”
In his remarks, the Department
for International Development Secretary of State, Penny Maudaunt, advised
security agencies to be neutral in conduct even as the 2019 general elections
approached.
Maudaunt said, “Though the
elections were largely peaceful and results widely endorsed by stakeholders,
vote buying by both the main political parties was widely criticised.
“There is time to tackle some of
the challenges noted before next year’s elections. But INEC will not be able to
solve all electoral problems on its own. Everyone in society has a role to play
and a contribution to make.
“Political parties must respect a
code of conduct adhering to the highest standards. We encourage security
agencies to remain visibly neutral and ensure a safe and secure environment for
the electorate.”
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