A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dr. Ibrahim Mani, has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of orchestrating widespread vote buying during the recent by-elections across several states.
Speaking during an interview on Trust TV, Dr. Mani claimed that the ruling APC engaged in more voter inducement than any other party, citing observations made by ADC monitors deployed to various polling units during the elections.
“In most of the places we monitored, it was the ruling party that benefited more from vote buying. And in Kano, the ruling party in the state also bought votes,” he alleged.
Dr. Mani further argued that the practice of vote buying is deeply rooted in systemic poverty, which he claims has been intentionally perpetuated by politicians to manipulate the electorate.
“They have so impoverished the people to the extent that the end game is to use this poverty against them and then bring out money to induce voters during elections,” he said. “It is a clear indication of what a government can achieve if they deliberately spread poverty to make people vulnerable.”
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According to him, voter inducement reportedly reached as high as ₦20,000 per person in some polling units, a notable increase compared to past elections where items like spaghetti and macaroni were allegedly used as incentives.
“At least now there is a little improvement from the last elections, where they were just giving spaghetti and macaroni. In some instances, they are now giving as much as ₦20,000 per voter,” he stated.
Dr. Mani also spoke about his party’s participation in the by-elections, describing it as a strategic move to assess the current political terrain and test the ADC’s emerging structures.
“We are still rolling out structures, mobilising and creating an environment that will make Nigerians have confidence in the electoral system. For us, these by-elections were about testing the waters,” he said.
He concluded that while the ADC is still building its political presence, firsthand engagement in the electoral process has exposed serious flaws and underscored the urgent need for electoral reforms and economic justice in Nigeria.
