Nigeria: Curtailing electoral violence through information and communication technologies
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2019
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Published by Conflict Study Center Babes-Bolyai University, Romania.
Abstract
Abstract: This paper examined the contributions of the Information and Communication
Technologies (ICTs) towards transparent and violence-free elections in African countries with
speci icfocus on Nigeria, which is the largest democracy in the continent. Many countries have
witnessed violent electoral contests, arising from the inability of the electoral umpire to conduct
free and fair elections, hence the introduction of ICTs to correct the lapses. The objectives of this
paper were to identify major ICTs gadgets for the conduct of elections in Nigeria and evaluate
the extent to which the devices have curtailed electoral violence. The paper adopted an inter
pretive case study as its research methodology. The interpretive method is based on analogical
deductions and re-analysis of relevant existing literature from secondary sources to generate
new indings.Findings from the paper were that the ICTs have added tremendous values to
the credibility of electoral process in Nigeria by securing elections from intense manipulation
and violence through the use of electronic gadg
ets, including the use of Direct Data Capturing
Machine (DDCM), Automated Finger Prints
Identi icationSystem (AFIS) and the Smart Card
Reader (SCR). However, it is concluded that the
use of ICTs has improved electoral credibility
but has not substantially reduced electoral vio
lence in Nigeria as the electronic gadgets have
relocated such electoral debacle from physical
to electronic violence, and from manual to digi
tal electoral manipulation. Digitalized electoral
process in Nigeria is also faced with machine
failure, system hacking and poor logistic sup
ports. It is recommended that the usage of ICTs
in the conduct of elections in Nigeria should be
sustained as a complement, rather than supple
ment, to the traditional manual voting system
in Nigeria. This recommendation is premised
on the fact that Nigeria is not yet ripe for sole reliance on electronic voting system, which is largely challenged by inadequate power supply,
derth of highly skilled ICTs technicians and high rate of ICTs non-compliance illiterate voters.
Keywords: contribution, credibility, violence, Nigeria, politics, election, ICTs
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contribution, credibility, violence, Nigeria, politics, election, ICTs