Electoral Crimes Threaten Nigeria’s Democracy, APPA Warns Ahead of FCT Elections
As the countdown to the FCT Area Council elections begins, the Association for Public Policy Analysis (APPA) has sounded a stern warning that electoral malpractice, if unchecked, could push Nigeria further into insecurity, bad governance, and international disrepute.
At the FCT Anti-Electoral Offences, Violence, and Crime Forum held in Abuja on Wednesday, September 17, 2025, the National President of APPA, Chief Princewill Okorie, delivered a hard-hitting address that underscored the dangerous consequences of tolerating vote buying, ballot snatching, intimidation, and other election-related crimes.
In his words, electoral corruption is “the root of Nigeria’s governance crisis” and must be confronted decisively if the nation is to move forward.
“When elections are riddled with manipulation and violence, they cease to be democratic contests and instead become criminal enterprises,” Okorie declared to resounding applause. “Such a process produces leaders who are worse than kidnappers, drug traffickers, and armed robbers — leaders who then shield criminals, institutionalize corruption, and destroy the fabric of society.”
APPA was Founded to analyze and evaluate public policies, APPA has consistently provided critical interventions to strengthen governance in Nigeria. Under Okorie’s leadership, the organization has gained recognition as a watchdog and conscience of Nigeria’s democratic process. The Abuja forum is one in a series of engagements aimed at mobilizing citizens, political parties, security agencies, and civil society groups to safeguard elections in the capital city.
Okorie reminded participants that the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria obliges both citizens and institutions to defend the dignity of the nation, live in unity, and assist lawful agencies in maintaining peace and order. “This is not just INEC’s duty. It is a constitutional duty for all Nigerians,” he emphasized.
Startling Data, Startling Reality, Okorie painted a grim picture with statistics linking electoral impunity to wider insecurity:
32,824 Nigerians killed between 2022 and 2024 due to political violence and banditry. 50,245 deaths and 4,185 kidnappings recorded between 2023 and 2024 alone.
238 incidents of electoral violence in the 2023 general elections, resulting in 24 deaths. 210 violent cases during the 2024 Edo and Ondo governorship polls, including shootings, ballot box snatching, and intimidation.
“Behind each number is a family destroyed and a nation diminished,” he said solemnly. “The question remains: how many of the perpetrators were ever punished?”
Okorie did not mince words in accusing Nigeria’s political elite of benefiting from electoral lawlessness. He decried the refusal to implement recommendations from the Justice Uwais Electoral Reform Panel, particularly the creation of an Electoral Offences Commission and the insistence that election petitions be concluded before winners assume office.
“These recommendations were designed to sanitize our system, but their rejection is proof that some leaders thrive on electoral fraud,” he charged.
While Focusing on the forthcoming FCT elections, Okorie stressed that Abuja’s status as the nation’s political and diplomatic capital makes it too strategic to be tainted by electoral violence.
“The FCT is Nigeria’s mirror to the world. If we fail here, we fail everywhere,” he warned. “The international community watches how Abuja conducts its elections, and a flawed process here will tarnish Nigeria’s image globally.”
In a powerful conclusion, Okorie rallied citizens, security agencies, and political actors to rise to the challenge.
“No technology, no constitution, no law can guarantee credible elections without the active commitment of the people,” he said, citing American historian Howard Zinn. “It is time for Nigerians to build a National Citizens’ Movement Against Electoral Offences and Crime. This is not INEC’s war alone. This is our collective mission to rescue democracy.”
The forum resolved to set up a multi-stakeholder monitoring and awareness team that will track electoral offences during the Area Council elections and ensure perpetrators are exposed.
With the thunderous reception his speech received, observers noted that Chief Okorie and APPA have positioned themselves not just as analysts, but as moral vanguards of Nigeria’s democratic future.
