We Have No Laws Against Giving Gifts During Campaigns – INEC
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman,
Prof. Attahiru Jega has questioned the term Bribe, saying that gifts
distributed to the electorate during political campaigns should not be
called bribe.
He did though said that distribution of gifts by political parties to
elctorates had grey areas, these comes as minority parties have been
crying that such practices where illegal.
Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Mr. Kayode Idowu in a recent sit down with journalists said:
“If they say people are giving gifts, how do we interpret that (as
bribes)? What is INEC’s provision to act on that? They (the givers) may
be telling a lie but if they say they are giving gifts for Ramadan, or
if they say they are doing service support, what will INEC be able to
do?
“It’s a grey area that is left simply for interpretation. If
there is any law that is broken, then we will act on that. How can you
tell that what they are doing has anything to do with electoral law?”
Jega spokesman said that there is however a law that stops
distribution of gifts in or around the vicinity of the polling unit on
the electoral day.
“That is clearly an electoral offence by which INEC can have the
police arrest such a person. But, outside that vicinity, if someone goes
to another’s house to visit or to give him something, it is not an
issue INEC can intervene on,” he said.
“We should also not underestimate voters, anyway. Voters are not
stupid. Quite a number of voters know what they want. What the media
should keep doing is to encourage them to vote from their conscience;
vote on the basis of programmes, principles and policies, and not be
bullied by any ties to gifts.”
The issue of gifts being distributed was raised up during the Ekiti
state governorship election, where it was said that the APC and the PDP
shared gifts to electorates to get their votes.
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