INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu gave the charge during the first quarterly consultative meeting with Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.
Prof. Yakubu noted that the problem of election begins during the party primaries for the election of candidates.
While acknowledging the Commission’s collaboration with the law enforcement agencies in combating vote-buying, he said much attention should also be given to addressing delegate-buying during party primaries.
“There is of course a lot of work to do, especially in combating vote buying. The Commission is happy with our collaboration with the law enforcement agencies, particularly the anti-graft agencies.
“Beyond the arrest of vote buyers on Election Day, our active partnership has so far resulted in the successful prosecution of some offenders in three States of the Federation.
“As you are aware, the problem also manifests itself during the party primaries for the election of candidates. In the same way that voters are targeted at Polling Units on Election Day, so too is delegate-buying at the venues of congresses and conventions for the election of candidates.
“As you can see from the Timetable and Schedule of Activities included in your folders for this meeting, party primaries for the Anambra State Governorship election begin next month, followed by the Area Council election in the FCT in June. We should continue to work together in partnership with other critical stakeholders to address the menace”, Prof. Yakubu stated.
