By Ayodele Oni
An election observation group, supported by the European Union, EU, has demanded prosecution of electorate involved in votes buying during off circle governorship election in Ekiti and Osun states.
Ekiti governorship election was held on June 20 while that of Osun took place on August 15.
According to the group, voters allegedly received as much as ₦50,000 to sell their votes during the 2026 governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states.
The EU Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria Election Observation Hub raised the alarm in Abuja, during the presentation of its report on the two off-cycle elections held in June and August, respectively.
Prof. Bolade Eyinla, who presented the findings, described vote-buying as an increasingly organised practice threatening the credibility of elections and voters’ freedom to make independent choices.
He pointed out that the group’s data showed that vote trading accounted for 77 per cent of 84 verified electoral incidents recorded across the two states, adding that political party agents were involved in at least 90 per cent of the cases.
Eyinla, revealed that vote-buying accounted for 69 per cent of the verified incidents recorded in Osun, yet the group has not received reports of arrests, investigations or prosecutions commensurate with the scale of the alleged offences.
He explained that some voters were required to mark their ballot papers in favour of a particular candidate and show the marked ballots to party agents before receiving payment.
Eyinla warned that the apparent absence of consequences for offenders could encourage further electoral malpractice, describing the growing practice as a serious threat to Nigeria’s democracy.
The observation hub also urged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to publish election results at the ward level, arguing that greater transparency would help expose irregularities and strengthen public confidence in the electoral process.
Despite its concerns over vote-buying, the group commended INEC for the conduct of the elections, citing the early commencement of voting and the close correspondence between official results and figures independently collated by observers. It also praised security agencies for maintaining peace during the polls.
The Executive Director of the Centre for Media and Society, Dr Akin Akingbulu, said the hub deployed 598 observers across Ekiti’s 16 local government areas and 823 observers across Osun’s 30 local government areas to monitor the elections.
He added that the exercise involved more than 1,400 trained Nigerian observers who documented and verified incidents at polling booths.
Discover more from The Source
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
