The 2019 Presidential Election is one of the most keenly and closely contested in the history of Nigerian Presidential Elections since the colonial and post-independence period. The election was heralded with tensions, accusations and counter-accusations, intense campaign, trade of blames by the ruling and major opposition parties and other related issues. This study examined the process of the conduct of the 2019 Presidential Election, the outcome and analysis of the voting pattern and its implications. The work adopted both primary and secondary sources of data. The primary source is the direct participant observation where the author was part of the process of the election as a collation officer for the Presidential Election in one of the local governments in Nigeria. The research also observed directly on a live broadcast the presentation of the results by the state returning officers where the results were collected and used for analysis. The secondary sources include the use of books, journals and internet sources. The data obtained was presented in a thematic form using tables and statistical interpretations. The research discovered that the outcome of the 2019 General Election continued to reflect the voting pattern in Nigeria where ethno-religious and regional affiliations determine how the electorates choose their President even though, the two major contenders this time emerged from the same region unlike the previous situations. The research recommends that there is a need for massive enlightenment among the electorates towards choice of leaders based on performance and not sentiments.

Political party financing is the process of funding the parties and the candidates that contested under their platform. However, in most developing democracies, elections and political party financing are marred with heavy allegations of corruption. The objective that this paper examined was the process of political party financing and how it's influenced or affected by corruption taking the 2015 General Elections as the case study in Nigeria's Fourth Republic. The methodology adopted for this work is the use of qualitative method of data collection and analysis. Data were obtained from primary sources using field work. The data obtained was analysed and discussed. The research discovered that, there was massive corruption in the 2015 General Elections unprecedented in the history of the country running in trillions of Naira (billions of Dollars). The research recommends that political party financing be monitored and strict regulations should be introduced to punish the offenders.

The COVID 19 pandemic has become a global health issue that now intersects with security issues, especially in African countries. The outbreak of the virus in Africa has halted political, economic and social activities, including countering armed violence. Nigeria is one of the African countries that is faced with security challenges, ranging from Boko Haram insurgency, rural banditry, farmers-herders clash, kidnapping, robbery to piracy among others. However, much attention has concentrated on mitigating the spread of COVID 19 pandemic and the provisions of palliatives to cushion the effects of the abrupt stoppage of formal and informal economic activities. This study examines the intersections between the pandemic and armed banditry in Northwestern. It appears that armed bandits have intensified attacks on communities, against the background of government’s anti-COVID policy. Government has equally re-strategized in responding to the bandits’ attacks. The study gathered data from documented sources and media reports and were analyzed, using content analysis. The study observed that the armed bandits used the COVID 19 lock down policy to increase attacks on some communities, thereby providing a complex dimension to rural banditry in Northwestern Nigeria. This led to increased air and land offensive by the Nigerian military against the bandits. This study recommends among others that government should increase surveillance and adopt strict measures on movements to curtail the activities of the bandits.

Godfatherism is one of the major obstacles towards genuine democratisation and good governance in Nigeria. In every political setting, there are financiers of politicians for elective positions and the financed ones. In Nigeria, the phenomenon of godfatherism denotes multibillionaires sponsoring anointed candidates for elections at all levels in return for favours and undue advantage towards the sponsors. This is a problem which impedes the emergence of popular and credible candidates who can deliver the dividends of democracy. The work examined the role played by godfathers in sponsoring politicians during the 2015 General Elections including the nature and dimension of the financing as well as its effects on the outcome of elections. The paper used a qualitative method of data collection and analysis where interview was conducted with some selected informants from various categories involving politicians, party stakeholders, academicians and focus group discussion with some selected electorates. The primary data obtained was analysed using qualitative method with existing secondary data on the subject of study. The study discovered that, godfatherism played a vital role in determining candidates for the major parties and that, a new dimension in godfatherism emerged where politicians who control power now transformed into financiers of their elections unlike before. The study recommends that, for a better selection of candidates and transparency in fielding contestants for elections, party primary elections should be transparent and INEC as the electoral body responsible for election conduct in Nigeria should intensify measures of checkmating money politics and fostering of candidates selection based on party principles and not anointment.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is the electoral umpire responsible for the conduct of general elections in Nigeria and other related electoral activities since the resurgence of democratic rule in 1999. One of these important electoral activities carried out by INEC is campaign monitoring and political party financing activities as provided in the Nigerian Constitution and the 2010 Electoral Act. This paper examined the role of INEC in monitoring candidates and parties' expenditure during the 2015 General Elections. The major problem was the way parties and candidates violated the regulations while INEC as the monitoring body was watchful without any concrete action. The paper used the qualitative method of data collection and analysis where the researchers went to the field and consulted informants in the affected agencies and individuals through interviews and Focus Group Discussions. The data obtained from the field was analysed using tables and other techniques of qualitative data analysis. The paper concludes that, politicians and their political parties spent above the campaign spending limits as provided by law in the 2015 General Elections and the electoral body (INEC) did not monitor properly the campaign spending due to lack of political will from policy-makers and loopholes in the law that empowered them to monitor the spending. The research recommends that for proper and effective campaign financing monitoring in future elections, INEC should be mandated to monitor all politicians and their activities during and after elections, the anti-graft agency (EFCC) should be involved in screening candidates while the Code of Conduct Bureau should be reinforced in watching public servants' assets.