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Propaganda, Vote Buying Trail Edo Governorship Election- CDD

Published

6 years ago

September 19, 2020

The Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) has released its preliminary finding on the September 19 governorship election in Edo State.

One major highlights of the findings focuses on how the brazen buying of votes by the two major political parties in the election would taint the credibility of the outcome.

At a media briefing to present its key interim findings on the election, CDD Director Idayat Hassan said the nature of vote buying had become more sophisticated as politicians induced voters with such items as Ankara fabric, spaghetti, and cash ranging between N1000 and N5000.

Similarly, the group stressed that the other issue which stood out in the election was the attempt by politicians to shape narratives through the use of propaganda and false narratives on social media.

CDD noted that the high level of propaganda from the political actors, made it difficult for voters to ascertain the truth about what was happening in the electoral terrain.

She said: “CDD observers reported cases where tickets were also given in lieu of cash for voters to vote and then return to use the ticket for collection of the cash.

” In several other cases as reported by our observers, cash of between N1000 and N5000 was distributed to voters who agreed to cast their ballot for the party paying for the vote.”

The pro-democracy think tank lamented that despite the pervasive nature of vote buying during the election, the law enforcement agencies, many of which deployed in big numbers to Edo State, did not deem it necessary to apprehend and prosecute those who engaged in vote buying.

She said there was a need to specify, which of the law enforcement agencies would take responsibility for investigating and prosecuting those involved in the illegal acts of vote buying.

“CDD observer reported that law enforcement officials largely looked the other way while vote buying was going on. No efforts whatsoever were made to bring to book the perpetrators of these acts, which corrupt the electoral process.

” Vote buying was widespread in this election. For instance, CDD observers reported seeing voters discreetly exchanging their voters cards with money from party agents at Polling Unit 8 Ward 2 of Okpon Area of Ovia-Southwest Benin. It was a similar case in Etsako Central Ward: 1 Unit 5 and 6 where voters sold their votes for N1,000.

“The brazen manner with which votes were bought and sold in the open calls to question the relevance of the over 30,000 police officers deployed to enforce the law during the election. CDD is concerned that despite expending time and resources to deploy thousands of law enforcement officials to the electoral space, the officers did nothing in the face of infractions such as vote buying.”

On the arrival of INEC officials, the centre said its observation of the election shows there was late arrival of INEC officials across the state. “The consequence of the late arrival for commenting of polling is that voting started late in most parts of the state.

CDD observers report that the late arrival of poll officials was caused by poor logistics, especially transportation of personnel and election materials to polling units.”

CDD said the late arrival of INEC officials and election materials had an effect on the adherence to COVID-19 directives, as officials tried to rush commencement of the process to make up for lost time.

“This led to the flouting of protocols and directives for COVID-19 prevention. CDD observers reported pockets of protests by ad-hoc staff, who complained over issues such as non-payment of statutory allowances.

“The protests by ad-hoc staff led to lengthy delays in the election. These logistics issues, especially with respect to transportation of personnel and materials to polling units, and claims of non-payment of election workers, have been a recurring theme in the conduct of elections by INEC.”

On compliance to protocols for prevention of COVID-19, CDD stated there was a general non-compliance to key protocols for preventing further spread of the novel Corona Virus. The group said in a number of the exceptional cases where compliance was observed, it was limited mainly to the wearing of face masks.

“The flouting of rule of physical distancing was the order of the day, there was complete inability of INEC to maintain her 2 meter rules as written in her guidelines. It is important that the late arrival of INEC Staff also contributed to the non-compliance with the COVID 19 protocol as the INEC officials in an attempt to rush commencement forgo the processes.”

The group also lamented that INEC poll officials were also reported to have flouted COVID prevention guidelines, with many placing their face masks on the chin, while conducting the election.

CDD said in the light of the risks posed by the COVID-19, INEC should explore further preventive measures by instructing poll officials involved in the conduct of the election to self-isolate, while working with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to test poll workers, who conducted this election.

On incidents of violence in the election, CDD said its observers reported incidents of violence in Ikpoba Okha, Oredo, Esan West and Oriohomwan due to the activities of political thugs who disrupted voting in different polling units.

“In Ologbo, Ikhoba Okha LGA, for example, one person was reported to have been shot while in Ihomwonde LGA, Ward 5 PU 1, 2, and 3, voting process was reported not totally peaceful as conflicts erupted amongst party agents that resulted to disruption of the process.

” In Egor LGA, electoral materials were allegedly hijacked in Ward 9, Unit 15 by political thugs who are hell-bent to subvert the electoral process.

” CDD observers also reported an incident of shooting in Orhionmwon Local Government Area. Party agents were also major drivers of violence in areas with incidents as the engaged in altercations, which later snowballed into fisticuffs.”

The group however said the level of violence was not as widespread as had been envisaged.

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Strategic Partnerships, Diaspora Investment and Improved Workforce Critical to Industrialization-DG RMRDC

Published

20 hours ago

November 12, 2026

The Gleamer

By: Stella Azi and Adaora Adibe

The Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike-Muonso, has called for a strategic shift from the exportation of raw commodities to domestic processing, manufacturing and value addition, declaring that Nigeria possesses enormous untapped raw material resources capable of driving industrialisation, creating jobs and strengthening the country’s economic competitiveness.

Prof. Ike-Muonso made this submission in a lecture titled Unlocking Nigeria’s Raw Material Value Chain for Industrialization, Manufacturing and Competitiveness, where he presented an extensive assessment of Nigeria’s resource endowments, industrial challenges and emerging investment opportunities across agricultural commodities, solid minerals and waste-based raw materials.

The lecture highlighted a combined US$2.65 trillion global market opportunity across 30 major raw material value chains, comprising 12 agricultural value chains valued at US$932 billion, 11 mineral value chains worth US$1.352 trillion and seven circular-economy value chains estimated at US$366 billion.

According to the RMRDC Boss, Nigeria must move beyond the traditional approach of extracting and exporting raw materials to building competitive domestic industries that transform these resources into intermediate products, industrial inputs and finished goods for local consumption and international markets.

He observed that the country’s manufacturing sector has struggled to sustain its 2014 peak, with its contribution to real Gross Domestic Product declining from 9.64 per cent in 2014 to 8.05 per cent in 2025, representing a 16.5 per cent decline. He also drew attention to the increasing cost of raw material imports, which rose to US$20.5 billion in 2025, approximately six times the 2020 level.

He explained that the growing dependence on imported industrial inputs exposes Nigerian manufacturers to foreign exchange volatility, increases production costs and weakens the competitiveness of locally manufactured products.

Prof. ke-Muonso stressed that the solution lies in developing domestic raw material value chains through deliberate investment in processing facilities, research and development, technology, infrastructure and stronger linkages between producers, processors and manufacturers.

He identified agriculture, solid minerals and industrial waste as three major resource platforms for Nigeria’s industrial transformation, stating the country’s significant production capacity and the enormous opportunities available for downstream processing.

Ike-Muonso noted that Nigeria produces over 63 million metric tonnes of cassava annually, making it the world’s largest producer, while also maintaining strong positions in cocoa, cashew, sesame, palm oil and cotton. However, more than 80 per cent of agricultural output leaves farms without adequate processing, resulting in the loss of significant economic value and industrial opportunities.

In the solid minerals sector, he identified more than 44 commercially viable minerals across over 500 locations, including lithium, gold, barite, bitumen, iron ore and high-grade limestone, describing them as strategic resources capable of supporting steel production, energy storage, electrification and advanced manufacturing.

The DG further drew attention to Nigeria’s industrial and agro-waste resources, noting that the country generates over 32 million tonnes of solid waste annually. He explained that agricultural residues, cassava peels, scrap metals, plastics and electronic waste could serve as important feedstock for bio-fertilisers, industrial chemicals, recycled polymers, energy production and other manufacturing applications.

In the agricultural sector, the DG identified cassava and industrial starch, cotton and natural textiles, natural rubber and elastomers, oil palm and oleochemicals, maize derivatives and cocoa processing as priority areas requiring increased investment.

He explained that processing agricultural commodities into industrial starch, sweeteners, textiles, technical rubber, specialty fats and other intermediate products would enable Nigeria to capture more value from its agricultural resources while reducing dependence on imported industrial inputs.

For the minerals sector, he highlighted crude oil-to-olefins and petrochemicals, lithium and energy storage, iron ore and steel, rare earth elements, bauxite and aluminium, and copper and electrification as strategic investment opportunities.

He particularly emphasised the importance of moving beyond mineral extraction into beneficiation, refining, battery precursors, industrial chemicals, metal fabrication and advanced materials production.

On the circular economy, Prof. Ike-Muonso identified electronic waste recovery, scrap metal recycling, plastic waste processing, agro-waste valorisation and battery recycling as emerging industrial opportunities.

He explained that transforming waste into productive industrial feedstock would not only reduce environmental pollution but also create new manufacturing industries, generate employment and reduce the importation of valuable industrial materials.

He noted that to address the structural challenges confronting raw material-based industrialisation, the DG highlighted the strategic interventions of the RMRDC, particularly the proposed 30% Value Addition Bill and the Nigeria Integrated Information Statistical System for Raw Materials and Products (NISSRAMP).

He described the 30% Value Addition Bill as an important policy instrument designed to encourage domestic processing of raw materials before export, strengthen local manufacturing capacity and guarantee access to essential raw materials for Nigerian industries, and NISSRAMP as a critical data infrastructure that would improve access to verified information on the availability, location and quality of raw materials.

According to him, the combination of appropriate policy instruments and reliable resource data would help de-risk investments, improve transparency and strengthen confidence in Nigeria’s raw material sector.

He emphasised the importance of collaboration among government, academia and industry in developing bankable projects, sharing investment risks and accelerating the establishment of processing and manufacturing facilities.

Professor Ike-Muonso called on Nigerians in the diaspora and other local and international investors to take advantage of the opportunities available in Nigeria’s raw material sector.

He identified industrial processing parks, mineral beneficiation and refining, agro-industrial platforms, circular-material processing, industrial input manufacturing and enabling infrastructure as viable investment platforms.

He noted that diaspora investors could contribute beyond financial capital by bringing technology, international business networks, governance standards, technical expertise and access to global markets.

He maintained that Nigeria’s industrial transformation requires coordinated investment across the entire value chain, from raw material sourcing and aggregation to processing, manufacturing, certification and export development.

Professor Ike-Muonso stressed that the country’s industrial future would depend not merely on the volume of raw materials extracted but on the capacity to transform them into competitive products that meet domestic and international market requirements.

He maintained that developing local value chains would stimulate industrial growth, create employment opportunities, diversify exports, conserve foreign exchange and deepen Nigeria’s technological capabilities.

Through its strategic interventions, the RMRDC is positioning itself as a critical bridge between resource availability, investment opportunities and industrial competitiveness, with the ultimate objective of transforming Nigeria from a predominantly raw material exporting economy into a strong manufacturing and value-adding nation.

Ike-Muonso has demonstrated this since assumption of office as the Director General/ CEO RMRDC in the area of capacity building, improved working conditions, promotion of merit, and maintaining a conducive environment that rewards excellence, innovation and dedication. This is evident in his institution of RMRDC training school, reward for winners of the RMRDC innovation challenge among others.

His commitment has brought recognition both nationally and internationally: Al-Jazirah double honour awards as Public Servant /Government Agency of the year 2024-2025 and the recent election as the Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Representative on the Board of the World Association of Industrial and Technological Research Organisations (WAITRO) is a attestation to his commitment.

Concluding the lecture, the DG charged staff, researchers, manufacturers and investors to see themselves as nation builders in the new era of raw materials-led industrialization.

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