Yesterday, I visited an office in Asokoro, Abuja. I overheard a respected senior citizen who happens to be the boss in that office while having a conversation with some of his staff and colleagues, asking the colleagues and his staff to vote for a particular candidate in this coming election. He promised that any of the staff that voted for his choice candidate will get a cash reward and other gifts from him.
This is not surprising, we have seen or heard senior staff in private and government-owned organizations mandating their workers or colleagues to vote for a particular candidate during an election and some of the Ogas that want to be kind and generous will even promise pecuniary benefits for those that voted for the chosen candidate during the election.
I can predict that this could be happening in your organization at the moment.
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This action of cajoling, forcing, harassing or inducing individuals to vote for a particular candidate may seem harmless but it is electoral malpractice that is punishable with at least two years of jail term. It is called vote buying and inducement of voters which our laws prohibited.
Section 22 of the electoral act of 2022 succinctly provides that any person who buys, induces or sells a vote during election shall be fined N500,000 and or jailed for not less than two years.
For elections to be free and fair in Nigeria, voters should be allowed to form a free and uninfluenced opinion of their own, they should never be forced to vote for any other candidates other than their choice candidates and that is why it is democracy.
You are permitted to persuade voters and make them see reasons with you on why they should vote for your choice candidates but anything other than subtle persuasion like cajoling or coercing or promising of pecuniary benefits for votes becomes a crime which we should never allow to thrive in our democracy. Voters should be allowed to vote for their own choice of candidates; they should be allowed to form their own opinion on who to vote for and should not be influenced or cajoled by another party.
A boss in an organization paying his staff to vote for a particular candidate has committed the electoral crime of vote buying; the staff that is accepting payments or gifts to vote for a particular candidate have as well committed the electoral crime of vote selling. A boss cajoling or inducing staff or friends by any means whatsoever to vote for a particular candidate is committing a prosecutable electoral crime. Promising a voter gift or money to vote for a particular candidate amounts to vote buying and selling which is prohibited in our electoral laws.
When next your boss or colleague is cajoling you, mandating you, harassing you, or inducing you by any means whatsoever to vote for a particular candidate who may or may not be your own choice candidate with a promise to pay you or gift you, kindly draw his attention to the fact that action amounts to electoral crime which is prosecutable with at least two years of jail term.
With just a few days until the general elections, we still pray and hope for a free and fair election; free from vote buying, violence, intimidation and harassment. Yes, it is possible.