Electoral Laws and Monitoring of Campaign Financing during the 2015 Presidential Election in Nigeria

Datos Bibliográficos

ID6277682
AutoresChikodiri Nwangwu (0000-0001-5710-0369, University of Nigeria), Olihe Adaeze Ononogbu (0000-0002-3873-8612, University of Nigeria)
Año2016
Volumen17
Número4
Páginas614-634
Fecha de publicación2016-12-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaJapanese Journal of Political Science (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1468-1099 • E-ISSN: 1474-0060
EditorialCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s1468109916000268
OpenAlexW2550492720
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas9
Referencias citadas13

The emergence of politicians with overwhelming financial muscle in Nigeria since 1990s has complicated the relationship between money and politics in the country. This has been intensified by lack of clear legislation on how political parties should seek funding for their campaigns. Although effective supervision of political parties’ finance is critical to the survival and consolidation of any democracy, the relevant electoral laws in Nigeria have not been effectively enforced. This is evident in the unbridled deployment of financial and other material resources by moneyed politicians and corporations during party campaign fundraising and electioneering. Among other things, this paper investigated the interface between the electoral laws and monitoring of campaign financing during the 2015 Presidential Election in Nigeria. The study is a documentary research and data were analyzed using a qualitative descriptive method. Utilizing the Marxist theory of the post-colonial state, the paper established that the electoral laws are generally couched ambiguously by politicians with vested interests in order to weaken the enforcement capacity of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as well as facilitate the advancement of the electoral interests of the ‘political entrepreneurs’. Thus, the unbundling of the Commission is recommended as a sine qua non for effective monitoring and supervision of political parties in the country

Campaign finance · Commission · Democracy · Economics · Legislation · Legislature · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Presidential election · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Finance · Law · Media Influence and Politics · Public Administration · Race, History, and American Society