Hello Hives,
A few days ago, I was listening to a programme on the radio about an ongoing election in one part of Nigeria. What caught my attention was the number of people calling in to share their opinions about vote buying, an issue that has been around for many years.
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In the past, political parties and their supporters would sometimes visit communities with small gifts, food items, or other tokens, hoping to convince people to vote for them. It might be a small bag of rice, some foodstuff, or a little money. At the time, people complained about it, but it seems the situation has continued to grow.
Today, the amount of money being offered during elections can be much higher. In some cases, people are reportedly sharing ₦10,000 or even more to persuade voters to support a particular candidate or political party.
This makes me ask an important question: Who is really responsible for the growth of vote buying—the people collecting the money or the people offering it?
Some people may argue that anyone who collects money in exchange for their vote is part of the problem. But there are also people who collect the money and still vote for the candidate of their choice. For me, however, the bigger issue behind the continuous growth of vote buying is poverty.
There are Nigerians who struggle every day just to put food on the table. Some people cannot afford one proper meal, not to mention three meals a day. So, when someone comes during an election and offers them ₦10,000, it can look like an opportunity they cannot afford to reject. That money could help them buy food or take care of an urgent need, even if only for a day.
This does not mean vote buying is right. It is still dangerous because it can influence people to support leaders who may not have their best interests at heart.
I strongly believe that if governments can create an economy where citizens have better access to jobs, food, healthcare, education and basic necessities, the power of vote buying will reduce significantly.
Sometimes, I feel that poverty itself has become a political tool. When people are struggling to survive, it becomes easier to use a small amount of money to influence their decisions during elections.
We should not only blame the person collecting ₦10,000. We also need to ask why that ₦10,000 is so important to them in the first place.
Until we seriously address poverty and give Nigerians a better standard of living, vote buying may continue to find fertile ground during every election.
Thanks for Reading
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