With less than two 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.
EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, disclosed this on Wednesday during an interview on Channels Television’s The 2023 Verdict, amid the scarcity of the new naira notes experienced by Nigerians nationwide.
“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 boss asked all Nigerians to cooperate with the anti-graft agency in its efforts in fighting vote-buying in Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly polls.
He also urged the citizens to vote for people with integrity and ethical standard into elective positions.
According to him, vote-buying is a serious issue that affects the future of Nigeria and its citizens and must be stopped by all means.
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. I think that is the biggest hurdle.
“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.”