ELECTION CRIMES

The Nigeria general elections are here. The much-anticipated last week of the month of February has brought with it a lot of emotions.

There are certain little actions that the Electoral Act 2023 has clearly stated to be offences with punishments attached to them. It is important to know these actions so as not to be found wanting on that day. They include the following:

1. SELLING YOUR VOTES: I am sure that you know fully well that vote-buying is criminal. What most people do not know is what happens to those who sell their votes to willing buyers. In law, not only the buyer is guilty, but the seller too, and both face the same punishment, after all, it takes two to tangle. Section 22(b) of the Electoral Act, 2022 states that “any person who sells or attempts to sell or offers to sell any voter’s card has committed an offence and is liable to not more that two years imprisonment or a fine not more than N500,000.00 (Five Hundred Thousand Naira), or both.

Please, do not get involved in vote selling. When someone offers to buy your vote, you run. Likewise, do not offer to sell to anyone. Two years imprisonment is no joke.

2. OFFENCES UNDER SECTION 126:

    Section 126 of the Electoral Act, 2022, lists certain activities that an electorate (a person who wants to vote) must not do in a polling unit or within a distance of 300 meters of a polling unit on election day. You can call them “Election day offences”. They include:

1. Canvassing for votes: Do not canvass for votes on election day. In other words, do not try to convince anyone as to who he/she should vote for on election day. This ought to be done before the election day, and definitely not in a polling unit. Keep your advice to yourself.
2. Soliciting for votes: This is as same as the above.
3. Persuading voters not to vote for a particular candidate: all persuasion should be done before 25^th February and March 11, 2023 and not on election ground.
4. Persuading voters not to vote.
5. Shouting slogans concerning the elections: I won’t be surprised that on that day, people would making jokes out of slogans that have been used for purpose of this elections. This is an offence and you could be arrested for it. Do not shout a particular party’s slogan. Do not make statements like “We nor dey give shishi” or “bulaba” or “on your mandate we shall stand” etc. These are not necessary.
6. Possession of any harmful/offensive weapon: Weapons are not allowed. Be it knife, cutlass, etc. You are also not allowed to wear any dress that would be deemed calculated to intimidate people. So do not wear something like black on black (I think that is intimidating enough).
7. Wearing of any party related symbols: You are not allowed to wear any shirt, cap, dress that exhibits or has on it any party logo or reference. So, keep your PDP umbrellas, your shirts that have BAT symbol or the broom, your labour party logo, etc at home. You won’t be allowed to have them on election grounds. Also, use of any vehicle that has a political party logo is also an offence. The summary of this is that, you should not have anything that gives out a particular political party on you
8. Blaring sirens.
9. Snatching or destroying election materials
10. Loitering without lawful excuse after casting your votes.
11. Using megaphone: unless appointed by law to make an official announcement, you are not allowed to make use of a megaphone, amplifier or public address on election day at the polling units.

Any person who does any of the above has committed an offence and is liable upon conviction to six months imprisonment or a fine of N100,000. However, anyone who snatches or destroys election materials shall be liable to imprisonment for a term of 24 months.

3. VOTING BY UNREGISTERED PERSON: Section 124(1) of the Act states that any person that tries to vote in a constituency where his or her name is not on the register of voters commits an offence and is liable upon conviction to a fine of N100,000 or imprisonment for a term of six months or both. Make sure that where you intend to vote is where you have been duly registered. Otherwise, you will not only be wasting your time, but also be committing an offence. Check here to be double sure https://cvr.inecnigeria.org/

There are other serious offences, however I trust that you would not be committing them. I mean you won’t threaten electorates, would you? You won’t get involved in bribery and conspiracy, would you?