By David Meshioye
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported a 5% rise in vote-buying during the 2023 general elections in Nigeria.
In a July 11 release titled, “Corruption in Nigeria: Patterns and Trends, Third Survey on Corruption as Experienced by the Population,” the NBS stated that the 2023 general elections were characterised by 22% vote-buying, a 5% increase from the 17% recorded in the 2019 general elections.
The NBS said, “Furthermore, in 2023, 10% reported that they were not personally offered money or another favour in exchange for their vote, but that instead another member of their household was approached, compared to 5% in 2019.”
According to the agency, about 22% of Nigerian citizens claimed that they were approached and offered cash by party officials to sell their vote before or during the 2023 general election, while 9% were offered other freebies.
The NBS added, “This represents an increase in both types of vote-buying compared with 2019 when personal offers of money were reported by 17% and personal offers of other favours were reported by 4% of citizens.”
A survey conducted by the NBS revealed that some electorates were not influenced by their voting decisions even after collecting money or favours.
“Just over half (55%) of the citizens who were personally offered money or another favour in exchange for their vote in the 2023 general election reported that the offer did not influence their vote choice, while 40% of those citizens said they voted for the person or political party which offered them money or a favour precisely because of the offer.
“Between 2019 and 2023, the proportion of Nigerians who were personally offered bribes in exchange for votes increased similarly across sexes, urban and rural areas, and age groups,” the agency said.
In an analysis of vote-buying by zones, the NBS stated that there were minimal to no changes in the South-West, South-South, and North-Central parts of the country between 2019 and 2023.
According to the NBS, the North-West increased from 23% in 2019 to 44% in 2023, adding that the North-West zone recorded “a relatively high share of 55% of citizens who were offered money or another favour in exchange for their vote.”
