Governor Chukwuma Soludo has stirred controversy after announcing cash reward for every ward won by his party, the All Progressives Grand Alliance, in the forthcoming November 8 governorship election.

While speaking on Saturday during the party?s campaign rally in Umunze, Orumba South Local Government Area, Soludo promised to give his party supporters N1m.

He said, ?When we were campaigning for the Senate, we knew we were going to win every ward in the South Senatorial Zone, but we still had some incentives. Any ward that APGA won received N1m, and we won all the wards in Orumba South.

?We promised each of these wards N1m and next week, we will redeem it. The ward that comes first will get N5m, the second N3m and the third N2m. That was the deal. For November 8, any ward that wins again will receive N1m, while the first three performing wards will get N5m, N2m and N1m respectively.?

The pledge provoked backlash from opposition parties and civil society organisations, which described the move as open inducement and a gross violation of the Electoral Act.

About 2.8 million registered voters are expected to participate in the poll, in which 16 political parties and their candidates will contest the governorship seat.

The newly appointed Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Joash Amupitan, had emphasised the significance of the Anambra election in consolidating the country?s democracy.

Opposition fumes

The National Vice Chairman of the All Progressives Congress in the South-East, Dr Ijeomah Arodiogbu, said Soludo?s action amounted to vote-buying and abuse of office.

?Clearly, this is vote-buying and against the electoral law. Soludo has been carrying out undemocratic activities in this election. He has been forcing communities to commit their votes through their leaders.

?The N1m offer is just one of many. We will write to INEC, EFCC, police, and other relevant security agencies about his actions,? Arodiogbu said.

Similarly, ADC?s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, urged INEC to act swiftly, describing Soludo?s promise as ?a public confession of vote-buying.?

The Labour Party also criticised the governor, accusing him of weaponising poverty.

?This is not good for democracy. Why is he giving out money now that elections are near? This is vote-buying and manipulation. He has failed in governance and now wants to buy legitimacy with money. We will raise this matter at the next stakeholders? meeting with INEC,? LP?s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, said.

A former Zonal Organising Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mike Ahumibe, also faulted the development, saying it undermined electoral integrity.

He said, ?Once there is money involved, it is no longer free and fair. Elections should be about the people?s choice, not about who can pay the most.?

Gov?s move dangerous, INEC must act ? CSOs

Also, some civil society organisations described the governor?s promise as dangerous.

The Executive Director of the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership and rights activist, Debo Adeniran, said Soludo?s action had institutionalised vote-buying and monetised the electoral process in the state.

Adeniran said, ?This is reprehensible. The governor of a state should be a shining example of good behaviour. Vote-buying is an electoral crime for which the governor could be tried once he relinquishes his immunity. It is a way of instigating the people against the law.

?What he has done amounts to electoral indiscipline and a criminal act. The authorities should stop him. INEC, under Amupitan, should take exceptional notice of it and apply the appropriate section of the law to discipline the governor. His immunity doesn?t cover electoral offences.?

Corroborating this view, a former National Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council, Alhaji Yabagi Sani, described the governor?s move as a dangerous precedent capable of undermining democratic values.

He explained that the statement amounted to an open attempt to commercialise the electoral process, which could fuel electoral malpractice and weaken public confidence in governance.

Sani called on INEC, the police, and the EFCC to investigate the statement, noting that a formal letter should be sent to him to clarify his remarks.

He said, ?It will have a lot of negative influence on politics because it means he has openly commercialised the election, and that is clear rigging. The money he?s talking about is the people?s money, which he wants to use to win the election because others do not have access to it. Even if they did, it?s not a good practice at all. That?s a bad idea for democracy.

?They preach against the use of money in elections, yet some of these people are commercialising the process to gain advantage. I think INEC, the police, and EFCC should also ask him to explain his statement. A letter should be sent to him to clarify why he made such a remark because it runs contrary to the laws of the land.?

Also, an election monitoring group, YIAGA Africa, described Soludo?s promise as a threat to democracy.

Speaking in an interview with Sunday PUNCH, the Media and Communication Officer of YIAGA Africa, Jennifer Dafwat, called for a stiffer punishment for politicians caught engaging in vote-buying.

Dafwat said Soludo?s statement further highlighted a deep-rooted problem in Nigeria?s political culture, where incentives and material rewards are used to influence voters? choices long before election day.

She said, ?Vote-buying is not limited to the act of exchanging money on election day. It includes any form of incentive meant to sway people?s decisions in favour of a candidate. What Governor Soludo said clearly falls within that category.?

She explained that such offers take advantage of widespread poverty and hunger, turning elections into transactions rather than contests of ideas and competence.

Anambra govt dismisses allegations

Reacting to the allegations, the Anambra State Commissioner for Information, Dr Law Mefor, dismissed the accusations of vote-buying, describing the governor?s promise as a simple act of motivation to energise supporters.

The commissioner accused opposition parties of deliberate mischief, insisting that the governor?s remarks were taken out of context.

?How does motivation for supporters amount to vote-buying? I don?t see how this amounts to selling and buying of votes, even if it?s true.

?Vote-buying, in my view, is the act of purchasing votes. A vote must be priced and bought; that?s vote-buying. So, how many votes has Soludo purchased by such a promise?? he queried.

Speaking further, he said ?Though I didn?t hear the governor say it, I don?t see anything wrong with a leader motivating his supporters. We have two forms of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic. Extrinsic motivation is material reward, which could be monetary.?

Over 22,000 ad hoc staff to be employed

Meanwhile, INEC has disclosed plans to deploy over 22,000 ad hoc staff of various categories to man the polling units across Anambra State for the forthcoming governorship election.

Speaking during a press briefing at the INEC headquarters in Awka on Saturday, the National Commissioner supervising Anambra and Chairman of the Tenders Board Committee, Dr Kenneth Ikeagu, said about 540 accredited journalists would also participate in the exercise.

According to information obtained by Sunday PUNCH, Anambra State has a total of 5,720 polling units.

Each unit, in line with INEC?s standard procedure, will be manned by four officials?one Presiding Officer and three Assistant Presiding Officers (APO I, II, and III)?bringing the total number of ad hoc personnel to approximately 22,800.

In addition, Supervisory Presiding Officers will be assigned to oversee activities at the various ward centres across the state.

When asked about the number of registered voters who had collected their Permanent Voter Cards as of Saturday, Ikeagu said he did not have the exact figure, noting that the collection exercise was still ongoing.

He added that the total number of collected PVCs would be made public at the end of the exercise.

Ikeagu stressed that the collection period would not be extended except on special directive from the INEC headquarters.

He further expressed confidence in the level of voter enlightenment ahead of the poll.

?Anambra people are very knowledgeable and have been adequately sensitised on how and when to vote. The election will start at 8:30am and end at 2:30pm. Anyone on the queue within that period will be allowed to cast their ballot,? he said.

PVC collection suffers setback

In the meantime, the PVC collection exercise, which began on Wednesday across the state and is expected to end on Sunday (today), has recorded low turnout across several parts of the state.

Findings by one of our correspondents, who visited collection centres in Amawbia, Awka, Onitsha, Nnewi, and other locations, revealed that the process had not progressed as smoothly as anticipated.

At most of the centres visited, registered voters were seen waiting in long queues to collect their cards, but with only one or two INEC officials available, the process moved slowly.

Some frustrated voters were observed leaving the centres without being attended to.

INEC officials at Uruagu Ward 11 and Akaboezem centres in Nnewi, as well as Imeudo Ward 1 centre in Onitsha attributed the slow pace to ongoing business and commercial activities across the state.

They, however, said the exercise had remained peaceful with no incidents of violence recorded.

Commenting on the exercise, the immediate past Publicity Secretary of the APC and a member of the party?s governorship campaign council, Okelo Madukaife, expressed dissatisfaction over the slow pace of the process.

Madukaife acknowledged that the exercise had been peaceful but lamented that it was moving too slowly due to insufficient INEC personnel.

?Apart from a few cases of law violations by APGA, things are generally running smoothly but slowly, based on the information available to us. INEC should deploy more personnel to speed up the process,? he said.

Also reacting, Johnson Okoye, the Special Assistant on Media to the Labour Party candidate, Dr George Moghalu, blamed INEC for the sluggish collection, saying the commission failed to create adequate awareness for the exercise.

He said, ?This experience shows that while our people are willing and eager to collect their PVCs, the process itself needs urgent improvement. INEC must deploy more staff, provide additional equipment, and ensure that the process is faster and more efficient.

?Another challenge is lack of awareness. Many of our people, especially those from the LP strongholds, didn?t even know that their voter?s cards are ready for collection. I therefore call on INEC to intensify public sensitisation, especially in rural areas, through radio, community leaders, and local announcements.

?The PVC remains the only power the people have to determine the future of our state. I encourage every eligible voter to make the effort to collect theirs, because that card is our voice, our choice, and our tool to build a better Anambra.? (Sunday PUNCH)

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