Former Anambra State governor and 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has warned Nigerians that vote-buying is nothing short of a national tragedy — a quick fix that mortgages the nation’s destiny.
In a fiery post on his X handle yesterday, Obi described vote-buying as “an investment in corruption,” arguing that politicians who purchase power have no interest in governance but only in plundering public wealth. “They are not leaders — they are looters,” he declared.
He said those who sell their votes are complicit in their own suffering, stressing that every ballot traded is a hospital denied, a school abandoned, and a job lost. “When you sell your vote, you sell your future,” Obi cautioned.
According to him, the billions of naira poured into vote-buying show just how powerful the ballot truly is. “If your vote had no value, nobody would be desperate to buy it. The real power lies in your conscience, your courage, and your vote,” he said.
Calling on citizens to resist the temptation of quick cash, Obi urged voters to reject politicians who reduce elections to “cash-and-carry markets.” The choice, he warned, is stark: continue trading votes for poverty, or reclaim the future through integrity at the polls.
“Nigeria is bleeding from corruption and bad governance,” Obi concluded. “A new Nigeria is possible, but only if we guard our votes and embrace the politics of service, not bribery.”