Citizen Monitors warns against normalisation of vote-buying, seeks probe of Anambra guber

Citizen Monitors, a civic accountability group, has raised the alarm over what it described as the growing normalisation of vote-buying, following the Anambra governorship election.

In a statement on Tuesday, the group said although the election was widely regarded as calm and orderly, multiple reports from voters and observers pointed to widespread financial inducement around polling units.

Citizen Monitors said the semblance of a peaceful process should not be mistaken for a credible one.

“A calm election is not the same as a credible election. You can have neat queues, working machines and signed result sheets, yet still run a process where the real contest is who can buy people’s despair the cheapest,” the statement reads.

Adeshope Haastrup, co-founder of the group, said the increasing acceptance of vote-buying as a normal feature of elections threatens the integrity of democracy.

“We cannot pretend that normalised vote buying is democracy,” Haastrup said.

“If we quietly accept this pattern, we are not just electing leaders; we are choosing the kind of country our children must struggle in.”

Citizen Monitors urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), security agencies and anti-corruption bodies to investigate reports of rampant vote trading and intimidation during the poll.

The group urged institutions not to, “by silence or indifference, subtly legalise vote buying”.

It also urged citizens to take responsibility for resisting inducement and documenting electoral malpractice.

Olajumoke Alawode-James, the group’s spokesperson, said citizens must be active in protecting the integrity of elections.

“If this election upsets you, don’t waste the anger. Turn it into a decision: I will not sell my vote. I will help record the truth. I will wake my street. We either all rise together, or we all sink together,” she said.

Citizen Monitors added that the Anambra election should serve as a “warning” ahead of 2027, underlining that the struggle to protect the vote must begin now rather than at the polling booth.