Time to Sanction ‘Monkey-Counting’ in Party Primaries

During the Babangida era, Professor Jerry Gana urged Nigerians to excel in every role—cleaners should clean well, teachers should teach well. Yet recent party primaries have exposed a brazen new fraud: “monkey-counting,” where officials announce impossible vote tallies in small queues. With flagbearers already declared, it remains unclear if these inflated figures will be ratified. Short timelines, patronage appointments, threats and emotional blackmail may have silenced dissent. But these tactics erode trust, and perpetuate a political culture where electoral malpractice is the norm. The disclosure of live “monkey-counting” broadcasts has tarnished Nigeria’s global reputation. It is time for civil society and President Tinubu to penalize those responsible. Only by enforcing real consequences now can we deter future fraud, protect our image, and rebuild faith in elections.

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