Connected Development (CODE) has revealed that the governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi states on Saturday were marred by widespread vote buying as low as N1000.
In the mid-day report jointly presented by Hamzat Lawal, CEO of CODE, Emmanuel Njoku, Director Democracy and Governance, and Head of Uzabe Elections Situation Room, and Hajiya Zaliha Lawal, Deputy Director Programs, all from CODE, the unsettling occurrence of vote buying was extensively detailed.
Njoku, speaking on behalf of the Uzabe Situation Room, disclosed that the disconcerting act of vote buying was observed across the three states in various forms and extents.
“In Bayelsa, at Market Square Ogia Town Ward of Ogbia LGA, verified reports of vote buying emerged, with transactions reaching as high as N20,000. Similarly, in Ama-Ukwu Umuawaka Square Ward, Njaba LGA, Imo State, votes were exchanged for as little as N1,000. This alarming practice must be promptly addressed,” he emphasized.
