The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has called on media practitioners in Osun State to place the fight against vote buying at the centre of their election coverage ahead of the August 15, 2026 governorship election, urging journalists to undertake detailed investigations capable of supporting the prosecution of offenders.
INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, IVEC, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, delivered the charge in a keynote address presented at a one-day Media Stakeholders’ Forum on Tuesday in Osogbo, Osun State.
The address was delivered on his behalf by the Osun State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Babalola.
Haruna stressed that vote buying emerged as one of the most troubling developments during the June 20, 2026 Ekiti State Governorship Election, with reports indicating that political actors and their agents distributed cash to voters at polling units, sometimes using numbered vouchers redeemable outside the voting centres to avoid detection.
He reminded stakeholders that Section 22 of the Electoral Act 2026 prescribes stiff penalties for vote trading, including a minimum fine of N5 million, imprisonment for up to two years, or both, in addition to a 10-year ban from contesting public office for convicted offenders.
The National Commissioner urged editors to dedicate greater resources to investigative reporting on vote buying before, during and after the election.
He also encouraged reporters to document critical details such as the identities of suspects, locations, amounts exchanged and the operational structure of vote-buying networks, noting that such evidence would support enforcement efforts involving INEC, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, the Nigeria Police Force and the Department.
