Connected Development (CODE) has said it will use its ‘Follow The Money Initiatives’ to track spending by individual political party and politicians in the 2023 general elections.
Executive Director of the organization who is a co-founder of the #NotTooYoungToRun, Hamzat Lawal expressed concern at news of inducement of delegates among the two major political parties in their primary election which started some weeks ago.
Lawal expressed concerns that the monetization of the process will leave other better candidates vulnerable as a result of their inability to pay delegates, thereby excluding potentially good candidates.
Although, Hamzat Lawal said his organization has started tracking the source of funding of politicians across party lines, he also wants the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to live up to its functions by keeping eyes on politicians ahead of the general election to arrest and prosecute those that may flout the electoral law.
Lawal said there are several ungoverned and undemocratic spaces that need to be improved upon, but how can you improve the environment through appeal to morality or should you try to use legal enforcement mechanisms in order to ensure that the environment is somewhat improved.
The social activist and anti money laundering crusader said that mind bugling resources were usually deployed by politicians to win power and this had been of concern because of criminals or people entering the political system using illegal or illicit money to buy power as it were.
For Lawal, it really is an important issue for INEC, EFCC, ICPC and other CSOs to confront the trend as Nigeria moves into an election year and intents and campaigns have already started in the lead up to 2023.
Being an advocate of due process and good governance, The Follow The Money initiator government to give INEC the needed capacity to monitor the funding to be able to actually hold political parties and their candidates accountable to ensure that they do not exceed what is legally defined as the acceptable limits.
For him, he called on all critical stakeholders in the country to prevail on the national assembly to ensure that they make laws that will revitalize Nigerian democracy, adding that democracies that endure are inclusive ones.
He therefore made a case for the consolidation of Nigeria’s democracy to enable it address issues of inclusive participation, setting parameters for operations, including that of a financial nature that ensures that a maximum number of interested candidates step forward without too much hindrance.
