N10 million reward for councillors after delivering of wards for Tinubu is not vote buying – Wike defends pledge

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Ezemuo Nwike has defended his promise of cash reward of N10 million to councilors who deliver their wards for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, dismissing criticism trailing the pledge.

He said his promise was intended to encourage political mobilisation and for councillors at the ward level of the Federal Capital Territory Territory to work hard. He said, he never directed councillors to distribute money to electorate and vote All Progressives Congress, APC candidates.

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Speaking on Tuesday during an inspection your of the ongoing projects within the Federal Capital Territory, Wike insisted that his promise to councillor was not vote buying as the money was not meant to influence votes.

He argued that rewarding hardwork for a targeted objective was fundamentally different from financial inducement.

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“I didn’t tell them, ‘Take this money and go and buy votes.’ I said, ‘Go and work. Show commitment. Demonstrate that you really mean what you are talking about. When you win, come and we are going to reward you,’” Wike said.

The Minister drew his comparisons with athletes who performed well on the international scene, they would always be applauded, lauded and rewarded for their excellent performance with houses and other benefits.

He contended that such development in politics shouldn’t be seen differently with a reward seen as a bribe.

He faulted some sections of the media for not being able to distinguish between political rewards and vote-buying, arguing that the two should not be treated as the same.

According to him, journalists scrutinise the circumstances surrounding political financial incentives rather than automatically interpreting every promise of reward as an attempt to compromise the electoral process.

Political parties and candidates, he maintained, spends huge sums of money for campaigns, yet it doesn’t attract criticism, querying how should a reward be an issue.

He maintained that political mobilisation should be driven by the ability of party leaders and elected representatives to convince voters through engagement, persuasion and a demonstration of commitment.

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