The Osun State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mutiu Agboke on Tuesday charged political stakeholders to shun vote buying and violence which he said, is dangerous for the country nascent democracy.
The resident commissioner who made the charge in a Two -day annual political stakeholders’ workshop organised by the leadership of the Inter-Party Advisory Council, Osun State chapter in Osogbo, the state capital, warned against the act in the 2026 elections in the state .
However, he preached against the practice which he described as undemocratic and called for political education cum enlightenment programmes from the party leaders to reduce the menace.
He argued that, if education and enlightenment programmes are keenly introduced into politics, those always found themselves in the act, could turn a new leaf.
He said, “Leadership of political parties should educate their followers on the problems associated with vote buying and their consequences.
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“I am very glad that the political stakeholders are the ones calling us to talk about vote-buying and talk about the tendency to be violent during the election”.
” I am also using this opportunity to say that the issue of vote-buying is a tendency that came into the electioneering process not from nowhere, but from the stakeholders themselves.”
He however recommended political education and enlightenment programme as the only solution to reduce vote buying and violence in the country polity.
Agboke thereafter admonished party leaders to avoid using force to get votes, noting that violence still remains one of the challenges confronting free and fair polls in the country.
On violence, Dr. Agboke said, “it is one of the cankerworms that is bedevilling the success of election in Nigeria, stakeholders are the ones perpetrating it and we need to talk to them to be able to understand how to comport themselves and ensure that people are better encouraged to vote than being compelled to vote”.
In his remarks,Osun IPAC chairman, Victor Akande assured that the issues of violence and vote buying in politics and politicking would be minimal at the end of the workshop.
He said the theme of the workshop ” Our democracy the way forward”, was chosen to enhance the course of democracy in the country.
