Nigeria leads the way for Campaign Finance legislation in Africa
Nigeria is not only Africa’s most populous country but also the fastest-growing economy with the highest Gross National Product (GNP) on the continent. Nigeria’s formidable cultural influence on other African countries over the years has been undeniable.
Often referred to as the “African giant”, Nigeria’s dominance seems to have gone beyond just its music with the country now also challenging other African nations by enacting legislation on Campaign Finance early this year.
Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari on 25th February 2022, signed the 2022 Electoral Act Amendment Bill into law. The Act repeals the Electoral Act No. 6, 2010, and is intended to bring innovations to the regulation of Federal, State and Area Council elections in Nigeria.
With the country’s 2023 general elections just months away, many have praised the timing of the enactment of this law following pleas by citizens on the need to clean up the money flow in their elections. The new Electoral Act 2022 that covers thresholds for both individuals and political parties has reined in on campaign finance abuses to ensure a levelled playing field for all contestants by spelling out campaign finance ceilings and penalties for violations.
The sections in the Act cover offences in relation to finances of political parties, power to limit contribution to a political party, limitation on election expenses, election expenses of political parties, disclosure by political parties and bribery and conspiracy among others.
Section 85 under Part V of the Act spells out the offences in relation to finances of a political party with clause1 to 3 stating that:
“ Any political party that— (a) holds or possesses any fund outside Nigeria in contravention of section 225 (3) (a) of the Constitution, commits an offence and shall on conviction forfeit the funds or assets purchased with such funds to the Commission and in addition may be liable to a fine of at least N5,000,000; or (b) retains any fund or other asset remitted to it from outside Nigeria in contravention of section 225 (3) (a) of the Constitution commits an offence and shall on conviction forfeit the funds or assets to the Commission and in addition may be liable to a fine of at least N5,000,000”
Section 88 of the new Act also sets limitations on election expenses for different political positions from Presidential elections to Councillorship elections at the Area council level as follows:
“ …(1) Election expenses shall not exceed the sum stipulated in subsections (2)-(7).
(2) The maximum election expenses to be incurred by a candidate at a presidential election shall not exceed N5,000,000,000.
(3) The maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred by a candidate in respect of governorship election shall not exceed N1,000,000,000.
(4) The maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred by a candidate in respect of Senatorial and House of Representatives seat shall not exceed N100,000,000 and N70,000,000 respectively…”
Clause 9 under Section 89 also sets penalties for candidates that exceed the campaign expenditure amount as stated below:
“… A candidate who knowingly acts in contravention of this section, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of 1% of the amount permitted as the limit of campaign expenditure under this Act or imprisonment for a term, not more than 12 months or both…”
The Act also indicates a N1,000,000 fine and forfeiture to the Commission for any political party that incurs election expenses beyond the set limit in subsection (2).
Section 90 of Part V also draws lines for disclosure by political parties as spelt below:
“…(1) A political party shall not accept or keep in its possession any anonymous monetary or other contribution, gift or property, from any source.
(2) A political party shall keep an account and asset book into which shall be recorded— (a) all monetary and other forms of contributions received by the party; and Election expenses of political parties. Disclosure by political parties (b) the name and address of any person or entity that contributes any money or asset which exceeds N1,000,000.
(3) A political party shall not accept any monetary or other contribution which is more than N50,000,000 unless it can identify the source of the money or other contribution to the Commission…”
SecretsKnown commends the new Act for including a section that speaks to bribery and conspiracy. Bribery in elections is common practice in Africa and on average, 43% of Africans admitted to being bribed by candidates according to a study by Afrobarometer. The Act strongly prohibits vote bribery with a maximum fine of N500,000 or imprisonment for a term of 12 months or both to any person who commits the offence.
Less than a handful of countries in Africa have legislations on Campaign Finance including Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia and most recently Nigeria.
It is important that other countries follow suit in prioritising the enactment of standalone comprehensive election campaign finance laws in accordance with international good practices for mandatory public disclosure of campaign income and expenditure, contribution limits, spending limits, and reporting.
This will protect political parties and candidates in the different countries from unnecessary campaign spending thereby helping avoid a situation where candidates receive a lot of money from individuals and other interests (including foreigners) who fund candidates and subject them into captivity after assuming political office.
Enactment and enforcement of comprehensive campaign finance laws will help African countries to promote transparency, accountability and counteract the threat caused by dirty money gaining unfettered to Uganda’s electoral politics. These laws will also promote fairness and integrity of the election a combination of which is crucial in pursuit of sustainable democracy in African countries.