Anomalies in Nigeria Presidential Election Data and Way Forward

What is it about?

Nigeria presently runs a presidential system of government and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is saddled with the responsibility of conducting elections, every four years. A fraud-free and credible election is a necessary ingredient to the growth of democracy. However, election fraud has become a major challenge in the Nigerian political system. Till date, reports show that elections in Nigeria have been marred with vote buying, falsification of results, underage voting, and the use of security forces to intimidate voters, among others. Hence, the authors suggest the need for transparency in the voting process and in the collation of results. There is also a need for an electoral reform to address the issue of electronic voting and electronic transmission of results. Electronic voting should be supported and encouraged by all stakeholders. The INEC, executive and legislative arms of government are advised to work in tandem to provide credible electoral process and improve on the conducts of elections in Nigeria. The chapter concludes with suggestion on the possibility of adopting election forensic techniques to address anomalies in Nigeria electoral results. The authors believe that this chapter contribution will be of great benefit to Nigeria and Africa as a whole

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Why is it important?

This chapter suggests a review of the election collation process and the need to address issues with the use of Smart Card Reader (SCR) in verifying Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC). The electoral body (INEC) should improve on the accreditation process by ensuring that all voters PVCs are verified through the use of SCR, and not through any other dubious means. The chapter also argues that INEC has the constitutional power to self-regulate itself. Hence, the executive and legislative arms of government should work in synergy with INEC to support electronic voting and improve the electoral process in Nigeria. The authors are of the opinion that the adoption of election forensics in Nigeria electoral process could also help to improve the process. Benford’s Law, Monte Carlo simulation approach and other proven techniques could help to give more insights into polling units and wards with history of anomalous electoral data.