Edo Decides: Yiaga Africa Expresses Concern Over Employment Of Violence, Intimidation By Politicians To Suppress Voters In Saturday Election

…Identifies Eight LGAs As Hotspots For Violence

Yiaga Africa, a citizen-led movement under the Watching The Vote (WTV) Working Group has
expressed concern and worries that politicians could tactically employ violence and intimidation to suppress voters in specific polling units and local government areas, LGAs, in Saturday’s election in Edo state.

The election monitoring group also entertained fears that armed groups and political thugs may disrupt INEC’s deployment of election material or elections in some polling units to influence the outcome of the elections.

Revealing this at a pre-election press conference in Benin on Thursday, Dr. Aisha Abdullahi, Chair of the 2024 Edo Election Mission, Yiaga Africa said her group notes the tense and volatile political climate for the Edo election as a result of potential election manipulation through violence.

According to her, the campaign period was signposted with strongarm tactics and violence following the activities of cult groups and political thugs which intensified amidst the proliferation of small and light arms.

While calling on INEC to demonstrate its capacity to conduct a transparent, credible, and efficient election by managing logistics effectively to enable carly commencement of voting across all polling units, Yiaga Africa said, it is concerned that politicians will tactically employ violence and intimidation to suppress voters in specific polling units and LGAs.

“We have identified eight (8) LGAs as hotspots for violence and they include, Ikpoba/Okha, Oredo, Egor, Ovia South West, Ovia North East, Esan South East, Etsako West and Etsako East and the volatile security environment in these LGAs necessitates a strategic and neutral deployment of security forces,”

Speaking on voter Inducement and Potential Vote Buying on Election Day, Yiaga Africa observed multiple instances of voter inducement during the pre-election campaign period in Edo State.

“Political parties and politicians continue to distribute cash, gifts, and food items to entice voters. These monetary gifts, ranging from N1,000 to N2,000, raise serious concerns about the credibility of the electoral process.

“These practices of voter inducement undermine the integrity of the electoral process, as they can distort the free will of the electorate and compromise the democratic principle of free and fair elections.

“Yiaga Africa is concerned that this practice may extend to election day, turning polling units to the epicenter of vote buying and as such, voters should be allowed to make voting decisions based on informed judgment rather than material incentives”.

The Watching The Vote (WTV) Working Group also expressed concern over “Expected Decline in Voter Turnout”

It noted that while the high rate of Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) collection indicates a willingness among the electorate to participate, several factors may contribute to continued low voter turnout.

Concerns over potential violence, economic hardship, and a deep-seated lack of confidence in the electoral process could deter voters from voting, it said, adding that past elections in Edo Siate reflect this trend, with voter tumout declining from 32% in 2016 to 27% in 2020, making an 8% decrease.

“Additionally, widespread disillusionment with political elites and persistent governance failures may further discourage voter participation”, Yiaga Africa stated

The organization however disclosed that no fewer than 25 election observers would be deployed across the 18 Local Government Areas of Edo State.