Nigerians score govt low on economy, laud action against Ebola, others

Electorate split almost equally on party lines 

AS Nigerians go to poll in less than two weeks’ time, some citizens have expressed disappointment with the state of the economy just as they lauded government’s performance in some areas.

A recent survey by Afrobarometer  finds that majority of Nigerians are satisfied with the way government has responded to the outbreak of Ebola virus which claimed lives of eight Nigerians, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). 

Conducted by Practical Sampling International (PSI) in collaboration with CLEEN Foundation, the survey featured 2400 adult Nigerians spread across 33 states of the federation, excluding three states in the North East zone namely, Adamawa, Borno and Yobe, due to the unrest in the region.

  According to the 2014 Afrobarometer survey,  “Nigerians rate economic conditions in 2014 to be somewhat better than what obtained in 2012, but still generally poor. 

In the current survey, 57 percent assess the economic conditions of the country as ‘fairly bad’ or ‘very bad,’ while 70 percent believe the government is doing a poor job of managing the economy, and 78 percent say the same about the government’s job-creation efforts. 

“More than three-fourths (78 percent) say the government is handling the fight against corruption badly, and 68 percent rate efforts to provide reliable electricity supply negatively.”

Generally, the survey shows that Nigerians are “dissatisfied with the current economic condition and the government’s performance on key issues, as three quarters (74 percent) say their country headed in the wrong direction in 2014. This figure marks an increase from 70 percent in 2012. Only 23 percent are satisfied with the way the country affairs is managed.”

The context of 2014 Afrobarometer survey is shaped especially by falling oil price, leading to declining public revenues, a situation that hampers economic growth.

Majority of Nigerians, however, rate the government high on its effective response to the outbreak of Ebola virus in 2014. The survey finds that “94 percent of Nigerians credit the government with a strong response to the Ebola outbreak.” 

  Ebola hit Nigeria in July when an American-Liberian citizen, Patrick Sawyer, was diagnosed in Lagos with the disease. Three months after, the WHO declared Nigeria Ebola-free — after more than six weeks without a new case of the disease.

 In addition, Afrobarometer survey shows that Nigerians are vey concerned about security as 50 percent express fear of political intimidation or violence, a figure indicating significant increase from 34 percent two years ago.

  Concerns about election credibility are also reflected in assessment of the previous elections. In the 2012 survey, 71 percent rated the 2011 elections as mostly or completely free and fair. However, when they look back from 2014, confidence in the quality of the 2011 polls has dropped to just 47 percent. 

“This may reflect greater public ambivalence about the overall conduct of elections, including several other elections that have been held since 2011. Though majority of Nigerians express confidence in their freedom to vote, they have significant criticism and concern about elections in Nigeria.” For instance, 68 percent of the respondents expressed lack of confidence in election as a means to “enable voters to remove from office leaders who do not do what the people want.”

While most Nigerians look forward to voting and believe that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is prepared, many also express uncertainty about the possibility of ensuring that the vote count. They expressed concerns about their personal security during highly competitive elections. 

The survey, which also offers a snapshot of voters’ attitude, indicates that major contenders in the presidential elections are popular among the electorate. 

“Based on the expressed preferences of likely voters, the presidential race is too close to call. Among all respondents, 39 percent say they expect to vote for the PDP, while 38 percent say they will vote for the APC. Among likely voters, the vote is evenly divided: 42 percent express a preference for the ruling PDP, and 42 percentage favour the opposition APC (Figure 19). In addition, six percentage lean toward other parties, and 11 percent were undecided or refused to answer.” 

Program Manager for the CLEEN Foundation in Lagos, Nengak Daniel, said the survey was conducted in order to document and circulate the view of Nigerians about their government.

Afrobarometer is produced collaboratively by social scientists from more than 30 African countries. Coordination is provided by the Center for Democratic Development (CDD) in Ghana, the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR) in South Africa, the Institute for Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Nairobi in Kenya, and the Institute for Empirical Research in Political Economy (IREEP) in Benin. Michigan State University (MSU) and the University of Cape Town (UCT) provide technical support to the network.