With less than three days until the general election, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) claims that intelligence at its disposal indicates that some politicians intend to buy votes in kind rather than cash.
The EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, revealed this on Wednesday during an interview on Channels Television’s The 2023 Verdict, amid widespread scarcity of new naira notes.
“We have intel that a lot of people have bought some items that they want [to use] to buy votes in kind not in cash. Some of these things are out there,” he stated.
“Politicians are also Nigerians. We too have a way of doing our own things. We have our own experiences in this as well.”
The EFCC chairman urged all Nigerians to join the anti-graft agency in its efforts to combat vote-buying in Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly elections.
He also urged citizens to vote for candidates who have integrity and ethical standards.
According to him, vote-buying is a serious issue that affects Nigeria and its citizens’ future and must be stopped at all costs.
When asked what hurdle the commission is facing regarding vote-buying, Bawa said, “I think the hurdle is if Nigerians are not buying into what we are doing. That, I believe, is the most difficult obstacle.
“Once we are united on that front because the office of the citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is the most powerful office in this country.
“We can all come together to ensure that the people we are voting into various elective positions are people with proven integrity and of higher ethical standard. The only way you can determine that those have genuinely sold themselves in what they will do is when they get into office