From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
A recent study carried out ahead of the 2023 general elections has shown that 40% of Nigerians do not believe the elections would be free and fair.
The report also indicated a lack of trust in the judicial system by citizens as 71.2% of the respondents disagreed that the judicial system was fair and equitable.
The survey was executed by Anvarie Tech ResearcherNG and Bincika Insights; and the findings formed part of a report titled: “The State of Freedom in Nigeria Report to Understand Citizens’ Perceptions Of Freedom Of Expression And Trust In Public Institutions, which was made available to journalists on Wednesday in Abuja.
The survey funded by the Washington DC-based National Endowment for Democracy sought to find out citizens’ views on freedom of expression, political participation, rule of law and corruption; with a special focus on their trust in independent government institutions.
According to the report presented by Farida Adamu, Senior Programme Manager of ResearcherNG, 71% of Nigerians lack trust in the judiciary, 65% lack trust in anti-corruption agencies, and 40% do not believe elections are free and fair.
She said: “Anvarie Tech and ResearcherNG and Bincika Insights conducted a survey with 1861 respondents across the 6 geopolitical regions in Nigeria between November 15 and December 10, 2021.
“The response to whether or not the legislature holds the government accountable, a majority of
respondents 56.8% disagree while 43.2% of respondents agree.
“65.2%, a majority of respondents disagree that government institutions established to tackle
corruption are independent and effective while 34.8% agree that government institutions are
independent and effective.”
Meanwhile, the survey on the Rule of Law and Corruption shows that “Citizen perceptions on access to justice indicate a lack of trust in the judicial system as 71.2% of respondents disagree that the Judicial system is fair and treats everyone equally while only 28.8% agree that the judicial system is fair.” She noted.
On freedom of expression, the survey revealed that across the six geopolitical regions in Nigeria, the survey indicates that perceptions of freedom of speech and the negative implications of exercising freedom of speech are balanced.
“50.4% of respondents agree that citizens are free to criticize the government without fear, while 49.6% disagree with this statement.
“Majority of respondents, 69.3%, agree that Nigerian citizens are free to organize political
groups, while about 30.7% of respondents disagree,” Adamu added.