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  • End of Year 2020 Poll Result

    Economic hardship, hunger top list of reasons Nigerians are dissatisfied with 2020 Abuja, Nigeria. December 22nd, 2020 – A new public opinion poll released by NOIPolls has revealed that majority of Nigerians (70 percent) asserted that they are not satisfied with the year 2020 in all aspects. Analysis by geo-political zone revealed that the South-West zone had the highest number of Nigerians who made this assertion. According the poll there are four major areas of shortfalls in the country namely: economic hardship, Security, unemployment rate and stagnant educational system, which informed their being dissatisfied with the year 2020. Specifically, poll revealed that 30 percent of the respondents disclosed that they are dissatisfied mostly because of the economic hardship and hunger they faced this year. Also, 19 percent mentioned high increase in prices of goods and services, 17 specified that it was due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic while 11 percent attributed their dissatisfaction to high cost of living in the country. Other reason mentioned are ‘high rate of unemployment’ (9 percent), ‘high rate of insecurity’ (7 percent), ‘stand still in the educational sector’ (4 percent) and that the ‘government has failed us’ (3 percent). On the contrary, out of the 30 percent who claimed that they were satisfied, 29 percent mentioned ‘God’s sustenance despite COVID-19 pandemic’, 24 percent said ‘I am alive and healthy’, 16 percent stated ‘healthcare has improved’ while 13 percent cited that ‘certain expectation came through this year’. This implies that despite the negative impacts of COVID-19 in Nigeria the poll suggests that about a-third (30 percent) of Nigerians nationwide do have some positive assertions about year 2020 – the most interesting thing from this category of respondent is their perceived improvement in Nigeria’s sector health sector and massive development in the agricultural sector. Consequently, the poll assessed the opinion of Nigerians regarding how well we have fared as nation in certain areas with regards to the year 2020. Hence, the analysis of results revealed that the Economy, Security and the Education sectors took the hardest hit as at least 75 percent of Nigerians are of the opinion that the nation has not fared well in the areas of: Economy, Security and Education. Specifically, 82 percent of Nigerians stated that the nation has not fared well in the area of the economy, more so, 78 percent of Nigerians asserted that the country has not fared well in the area of security and 75 percent of Nigerians nationwide stated that the country has not fared well in the area of Education. Finally, the poll having assessed the perception and the opinions of Nigerians regarding 2020, Nigerians mentioned four key areas of shortfalls in the country: economic hardship, Security, unemployment rate and stagnant educational system, which informed their being dissatisfied with the year 2020. Concerning areas of focus where the citizenry think that the nations has not fared well in the 2020, the poll also revealed that the Economy, Security and Education sectors are the hardest hit or poorly performing sectors with at least about 75 percent of Nigerians across all regions affirming this. Therefore, the poll having highlighted these hardest hit sectors, it is important that government and stakeholders in all three sectors highlighted herein move quickly to address all the challenges inhibiting the growth of this three sectors and drive growth in these sectors in the year ahead. These are the key highlights from the End of Year Poll conducted in the week commencing December, 14th 2020. Survey Background End of the year for a typical Nigerian is a period for different celebrations, with diverse festivities ranging from parties to carnivals, social gatherings, family/school reunions, cultural fairs to annual sporting and art events, etc. To some Nigerians, it is a time to reflect on what they have achieved thus far and what to expect in the coming year. However, the year 2020 is particularly a unique year given the impact of Coronavirus on the livelihoods of the citizenry as a result of measures that were put in place by government reduce the spread of the virus. Against this backdrop, NOIPolls conducted a survey to gauge the perceptions and opinions of Nigerians regarding the year 2020 as a whole. Survey Findings Given that 2020 is a unique and eventful year, the first question gauged the level of satisfaction of the respondents. The poll result revealed that majority of Nigerians (70 percent) asserted that they are not satisfied with the year 2020 as a whole. Analysis by geo-political zone revealed that the South-West zone represented that highest number of Nigerians who made this assertion. Also, with regards to age-group, analysis showed that the level of dissatisfaction increases as the age-group increased hence, Nigerians aged 60 and above had more respondents (76 percent) who were dissatisfied in this category. On the other hand, 30 percent of the respondents mentioned that they are satisfied with the year 2020 as a whole and Nigerians living in the North-West zone had more respondents who stated this. Subsequently, 70 percent of the respondent who stated that they were dissatisfied were further probed and analysis showed that there are 4 major categories of issues, such as economic hardship, Security, unemployment rate and stagnant educational system, which informed their being dissatisfied with the year 2020. Specifically, poll revealed that 30 percent of the respondents disclosed that they are dissatisfied mostly because of the economic hardship and hunger they faced this year. Also, 19 percent mentioned high increase in prices of goods and services, 17 specified that it was due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic while 11 percent attributed their dissatisfaction to high cost of living in the country. Other reason mentioned are ‘high rate of unemployment’ (9 percent), ‘high rate of insecurity’ (7 percent), ‘stand still in the educational sector’ (4 percent) and that the ‘government has failed us’ (3 percent). On the contrary, respondents who mentioned that they are satisfied with current year stated the top 4 reasons for their satisfaction were: ‘God’s sustenance despite COVID-19 pandemic’ (29 percent), ‘I’m alive and healthy’ (24 percent), ‘healthcare has improved’ (16 percent) and their ‘certain expectation came through’ (13 percent). This implies that despite the negative impacts of COVID-19 in Nigeria the poll suggests that about a-third (30 percent) of Nigerians nationwide do have some positive assertions about year 2020 – the most interesting thing from this category of respondent is their perceived improvement in Nigeria’s sector health sector and massive development in the agricultural sector. In their opinion the COVID-19 pandemic has forced our leadership to focus more on the lapses and gaps in the Nigerian health sector as well as make tremendous effort in the area of agricultural development in the current year. Furthermore, the poll assessed the opinion of Nigerians regarding how well we have fared as nation in certain areas with regards to the year 2020. Hence, the analysis of results revealed that the Economy, Security and the Education sectors took the hardest hit as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic; as at least 8 in 10 Nigerians nationwide are of the opinion that the nation has not fared well in the area of: Economy, Security and Education. Specifically, 82 percent (58 percent + 24 percent) of Nigerians stated that the nation has not fared well in the area of the economy, more so, 78 percent (58 percent + 20 percent) of Nigerians asserted that the country has not fared well in the area of security and 75 percent (46 percent + 29 percent) of Nigerians nationwide stated that the country has not fared well in the area of Education. Additionally, 52 percent (31 percent + 21 percent) of Nigerians do not think that the nation has fared well in the areas of Electricity in the year 2020, furthermore, 50 percent (24 percent + 26 percent) of Nigerians nationwide stated that the nation has not fared well in the area of Agriculture and 59 percent (34 percent + 25 percent). Conclusion In conclusion, the poll has revealed that a larger proportion of Nigerians (70 percent) are dissatisfied with the year 2020 mainly due to four key areas of shortfalls in the country namely economic hardship, Security, unemployment rate and stagnant educational system. Concerning areas of focus where the citizenry think that the nations has not fared well in the 2020, the poll also revealed that the Economy, Security and Education sectors are the hardest hit sectors with at least about 75 percent of Nigerians across all regions affirming this. Therefore, the poll having highlighted these hardest hit sectors, it is imperative that government and stakeholders in all three sectors highlighted here move swiftly to address all the challenges obstructing the growth of this three sectors and drive growth in these sectors in the year ahead. Survey Method The poll was conducted in the week commencing December 14th, 2020. It involved telephone interviews of a random nationwide sample. 1,000 randomly selected phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geopolitical zones in the country, were interviewed. With a sample of this size, we can say with 95% confidence that the results obtained are statistically precise – within a range of plus or minus 4.65%. NOIPolls Limited, is the No1 for country specific polling services in West Africa. We conduct periodic opinion polls and studies on various socio-economic and political issues in Nigeria. More information is available at www.noi-polls.com or download our mobile app NOIPolls on your smartphone. Disclaimer This press release has been produced by NOIPolls Limited to provide information on all issues which form the subject matter of the document. Kindly note that while we are willing to share results from our polls with the general public, we only request that NOIPolls be acknowledged as author whenever and wherever our poll results are used, cited or published. NOIPolls hereby certifies that all the views expressed in this document accurately reflect its views of respondents surveyed for the poll, and background information is based on information from various sources that it believes are reliable; however, no representation is made that it is accurate or complete. Whilst reasonable care has been taken in preparing this document, no responsibility or liability is accepted for errors or fact or for any views expressed herein by NOIPolls for actions taken as a result of information provided in this report. Any ratings, forecasts, estimates, opinions or views herein constitute a judgment as at the date of this document. If the date of this document is not current, the views and content may not reflect NOIPolls’ current findings and/or thinking. Press Contact Email: editor@noi-polls.com cakubue@noi-polls.com nohuche@noi-polls.com Number: +234 (0) 9 – 290 4162 +234 (0) 9 – 291 4877 #economy #security #year2020pollresult #endofyearpoll #Health #agriculture #education #electricity

  • 80 Percent of Adult Nigerians Do Not Support Scrapping of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC)

    NATIONAL YOUTH SERVICE CORPS (NYSC) POLL RESULT RELEASE New Poll: Cultural Integration, Exposure, and Self-development; Main reason 80 Percent of Adult Nigerians Do Not Support Scrapping of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Abuja, Nigeria 20th July 2021 – A new public opinion poll conducted by NOIPolls has revealed that 8 in 10 adult Nigerians do not support the scrapping of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and there are more Nigerians from the North-East zone (88 percent) who made this assertion. This is in line with the position of the Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’ad Abubakar, who spoke when he hosted some selected members of NYSC Batch A stream 2 Corps members posted to Sokoto state in his palace in May 2021.[1] The emir further explained that the NYSC scheme was established to foster the nation’s unity and strengthen ties among Nigerians. According to him, the NYSC scheme is the most needed programme in view of the present situation when Nigeria is almost divided along ethnic and religious lines.[2] More findings revealed that out of the 80 percent who do not support the scrapping of the scheme, a larger proportion (30 percent) believe that the scheme encourages cultural integration in the country. While 27 percent consider it to be an avenue for exposure and self-development, 17 percent believe it helps the youths in various ways. However, of the 13 percent of Nigerians who support the scrapping of the scheme, 56 percent based their reason mostly on current security challenges in the country. The poll results further indicated that most Nigerians (83 percent) who were interviewed admitted that the scheme has met its objectives of fostering National Unity in the country. Interestingly, 83 percent stated that graduates do benefit from the scheme and when probed further, monthly allowance (30 percent), intercultural relationship (17 percent), and self-development (12 percent) were the three top benefits mentioned amongst others. In a country where some families toil day and night to make ends meet, the impact of the N33,000 monthly allowance paid to Youth Corps members cannot be undermined considering the adverse effect of scrapping the scheme. With regards to modifying the scheme, 24 percent of adult Nigerians would like the scheme to be modified in such a way that the corps members get employed immediately after their service year. Therefore, rather than scrapping it, the government and concerned stakeholders should laisse with private companies and organizations to gainfully employ a certain percentage of Youth Corps members after completing their service year. These are some of the key findings from the NYSC poll conducted in the week commencing 12th July 2021. Survey Background The NYSC service was created as a federal government response to the gulf of divide and disunity that existed amongst Nigerians after the 30 grueling months of the civil war, which gulped thousands of lives and left in its wake wanton destructions of properties of monumental proportions. The cardinal reason for the creation of the service scheme is to heal the wounds the nation is nursing as an effect of the unfortunate and undesired civil war. It was meant to reconstruct, reconcile, and rebuild the country after the Nigerian Civil war. The NYSC service scheme was created on the 22nd of May 1973 by decree No.24 which stated that the NYSC service scheme is established “with a view to the proper encouragement and development of common ties among the youths of Nigeria and the promotion of national unity”. The scheme has the primary purpose of inculcating in Nigerian Youths the spirit of selfless service to the community, and to emphasize the spirit of oneness and brotherhood of all Nigerians, irrespective of cultural or social background.[3] After more than four decades of the establishment of the scheme, the debate has always reared on whether the scheme has achieved its aim or not and if there is a need to scrap the NYSC and replace it with another scheme. It is, however, a matter of debate in the National assembly if the scheme should be scrapped or not. The proponents of the scrapping are sighting issues of insecurity, unemployment, influencing posting among corps members as some of the reasons for the scrapping of the scheme while those opposing the scheme are citing the gains of fostering unity amongst Nigerians which the scheme has achieved over the years, as the reason why the scheme should continue to exist. It is indeed common knowledge that corps members are now posted to states within the region of their origin thereby questioning the issue of fostering unity which the scheme seeks to achieve. “If you cannot be posted out of your region due to insecurity, then why mobilizing people for the scheme and where is the unity the scheme seeks to achieve?” queried a concerned citizen. Whether or not the service scheme will be scrapped is left to be seen but the debate rages on and Nigerians of different walks of life are sharply divided amongst the lines of scrapping or not. In the heat of the debate, NOIPolls conducted a poll to gauge the opinions of Nigerians regarding the 1-year service scheme. Survey Findings To enable Nigerian youths, acquire the spirit of self-reliance by encouraging them to develop skills for self-employment. To contribute to the accelerated growth of the national economy. To develop common ties among the Nigerian youths and promote national unity and integration.[4] Given the above, 83 percent of adult Nigerians interviewed disclosed that the NYSC scheme has met its objectives especially in fostering National Unity in the country. Interestingly, further analysis revealed that there are slightly more non-graduates (85 percent) than graduates (80 percent) who believe that the NYSC scheme has met its objectives in the country. Likewise, respondents who did not participate in the 1-year NYSC program are more (85 percent) than the respondents who have gone through the scheme. With regards to the benefit of the scheme, 83 percent of adult Nigerians admitted that the Nigerian graduates benefit from the NYSC scheme after graduating from the University. Nigerians residing in the North East (90 percent) had more respondents who indicated that the NYSC scheme is beneficial to graduate. Also, respondents who did not participate in the 1-year NYSC program are more (89 percent) than those (80 percent) who have gone through the scheme. Subsequently, the poll result revealed that monthly allowance (30 percent) is the main benefit of the NYSC scheme as mentioned by 30 percent of the respondents who indicated that there are benefits from the scheme. Other mentions include intercultural relationships (17 percent), self-development (12 percent), promotes national unity (10 percent), and access to various opportunities amongst other benefits. Furthermore, when asked about the government’s use of corps members as Adhoc staff during elections, a majority of the respondents (57 percent) agreed with the government’s use of corps members as Adhoc electoral officers during elections in the country. On the other hand, 32 percent of the respondents disagreed with the government’s use of corps members as Adhoc staff whereas 11 percent did not have a definite opinion on the topic as they neither agree nor disagree with the use of corps members as Adhoc staff during elections. With regards to a bill to scrap NYSC which is currently being debated in the National Assembly, 52 percent of adult Nigerians claimed that they are not aware that a bill to scrap the scheme is being debated in the National Assembly. On the contrary, 48 percent acknowledged awareness of the bill being debated in the National Assembly. The poll further revealed that respondents who are aware of this bill are mostly Nigerians (65 percent) who have participated in the scheme in the past. Also, there are more graduates (61 percent) than non-graduates (38 percent) who are aware of the bill in the National Assembly. Regardless of awareness, when respondents were asked if they support or oppose the scrapping of the NYSC, the poll result revealed that 80 percent of adult Nigerians do not support the scrapping of the NYSC scheme. Analysis by geo-political zone revealed that there are more Nigerians from the North-East zone (88 percent) who made that assertion. Contrarily, 13 percent of the respondents support the scrapping of the scheme while 7 percent neither support nor oppose the bill. It is worthy to note that analysis by educational status shows that there are more non-graduates (83 percent) than graduates (78 percent) who do not support the scrapping of NYSC. Likewise, there is a large proportion of respondents (84 percent) who did not participate in the scheme yet do not support that it should be scrapped. Further probing revealed that out of the 80 percent, a larger proportion of adult Nigerians (30 percent) who do not support the scrapping of the NYSC scheme believe that the scheme encourages cultural integration. While 27 percent consider it to be an avenue for exposure and self-development, 17 percent believe it helps the youths in various ways. Other reasons include gaining work experience (11 percent), adaptation (10 percent), and completing the educational process. Of the 13 percent who supports the scrapping of the scheme, 56 percent mentioned security challenges as the main reason why they want the NYSC to be scrapped. While 24 percent stated that the scheme has not to benefit, 10 percent say it is of no use as well as a meager 6 percent who mentioned that the welfare packages are very poor. When asked: if the NYSC were to be modified, what are some of the changes you would like to see? The finding revealed that 24 percent of adult Nigerians would like the scheme to be modified in such a system that the corps members get employed immediately after their service year. This is closely followed by 23 percent who mentioned that corps members should be posted for the 1-year scheme within their geopolitical locations. In addition, 13 percent were concerned about the specialization of the graduates as they stated that corps members should be posted to organizations relevant to their discipline. it is also, worthy to note that 1 in 10 adult Nigerians (10 percent) clearly mentioned that the 1-year national service should be modified to be made optional. Conclusion In conclusion, the poll has revealed that most Nigerians do not support the scrapping of the NYSC scheme mainly due to cultural integration. Asides the 83 percent assertion that the scheme has met its objectives of fostering National Unity in the country, 83 percent also believe that graduates do benefit from the scheme. Some of those benefits include monthly allowance (30 percent), intercultural relationship (17 percent), and self-development (12 percent) amongst other benefits. Finally, 24 percent of adult Nigerians would like the scheme to be modified in such a way that the corps members get employed immediately after their service year. Therefore, rather than scrapping it, the government and concerned stakeholders should laisse with private companies and organizations to gainfully employ a certain percentage of Youth Corpers after completing their service year. These are some of the key findings from the NYSC poll conducted in the week commencing 12th July 2021. Survey Methods The opinion poll was conducted in the week commencing, July 12th, 2021. It involved telephone interviews of a proportionate nationwide sample of 1,000 randomly selected phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geopolitical regions and 36 states and the FCT of the country. Interviews were conducted in 5 languages – Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba, Pidgin English, and English. Although we can say with 95% confidence that the results obtained were statistically precise – within a margin of error of plus or minus 4.65%; we recognize that the exclusive use of telephone polling has its limitation of excluding non-phone-owning Nigerians. Nonetheless, with the country’s teledensity put over 100 percent by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), we consider our telephone polling approach appropriate. Also, given the rigorous scientific process of randomization and stratification applied, we can confidently stand by the validity of our methodology and approach. NOIPolls Limited, No1 for country-specific polling services in West Africa. We conduct periodic opinion polls and studies on various socio-economic and political issues in Nigeria. More information is available at www.noi-polls.com. Disclaimer This press release has been produced by NOIPolls Limited to provide information on all issues which form the subject matter of the document. Kindly note that while we are willing to share results from our polls with the public, we only request that NOIPolls be acknowledged as authors whenever and wherever our poll results are used, cited, or published. NOIPolls hereby certifies that all the views expressed in this document accurately reflect the views of respondents surveyed for the poll, and background information is based on information from various sources that it believes are reliable; however, no representation is made that it is accurate or complete. Whilst reasonable care has been taken in preparing this document, no responsibility or liability is accepted for errors or fact or for any views expressed herein by NOIPolls for actions taken because of information provided in this report. Any ratings, forecasts, estimates, opinions, or views herein constitute a judgment as at the date of this document. If the date of this document is not current, the views and content may not reflect NOIPolls’ current findings and/or thinking. Press Contact Email: editor@noi-polls.com cakubue@noi-polls.com nohuche@noi-polls.com Number: +234 (0) 9 - 290 4162 +234 (0) 9 – 291 4877 [1] https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/464954-scrapping-nysc-scheme-not-in-interest-of-nigerias-unity-sultan.html [2] https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/464954-scrapping-nysc-scheme-not-in-interest-of-nigerias-unity-sultan.html [3] https://www.nysc.gov.ng/aboutscheme.html [4] https://www.nysc.gov.ng/objectives.html

  • NOIPOLLS PERSONAL WELL-BEING INDEX July 2020

    The NOIPolls Personal Well-Being Index Stood At 57.6 In June 2020 Abuja, Nigeria. July 7th, 2020-The NOIPolls Personal Well-Being report for June 2020 stood at 57.6 points amidst the COVID-19 outbreak in Nigeria. The Personal Well-Being Index (PWBI) is determined by the satisfaction level of Nigerians on various components of their personal lives. Out of the seven indicators, the economic index (33.1-points), standard of living index (43.0-points) and achievement in life index (46.1-points) were the lowest ranking indices while religion index (82.0) had the highest point. The measures deployed in fighting COVID-19 outbreak in the country could also have contributed to the poor economic index amongst Nigerians. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the government at all level to improve the economy as this index may also directly or indirectly affect other indices. These are some of the key highlights from the personal well-being index press release. In February 2014, NOIPolls Limited introduced its portfolio of indices; the NOIPolls Personal Well-Being Index (PWBI), the NOIPolls Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) and the NOIPolls Eagle 30 Business Confidence Index (EBCI). The NOIPolls Personal Well-Being Index measures factors impacting the lives of everyday Nigerians; thereby producing a complete view of the individual’s personal well-being. The NOIPolls Consumer Confidence Index provides consumer assessments of the economic situation and their intentions and expectations for the future while The NOIPolls Eagle 30 Business Confidence Index measures business leaders’ perceptions and expectations about the Nigerian business environment using the top 30 companies in the country. Nigerian businesses, financial and government agencies largely depend on the perceptions and micro assessment of consumers’ expectation in making decisions. At best, they draw conclusions on the business environment based on information from their immediate surroundings, while the minorities conduct surveys that are time and money consuming. However, the introduction of these indices provides indicators that will ensure stakeholders can detect and respond to changes in consumer behavior, the economy and the business environment in Nigeria. The NOIPolls Personal Well-Being Index (PWBI) A breakdown of the seven key indicators that comprise the PWBI showed that Nigerians are mostly satisfied with their Religion (82.0-points), Health (75.1-points) and Social interaction (65.4-points) as they obtained points above average. However, while personal security index (58.4-points) was slightly above average, the remaining indices remained below average which may suggest that Nigerians are not satisfied with these indicators; they include Achievement in Life (46.0-points), Standard of living (43.0-points) and Economic situation (33.1-points). In general, the survey shows that Nigerians are not satisfied with their personal economic situation as it is the lowest ranked indicator amongst all the seven indices. These seven key indicators that comprise the PWBI are highlighted in the chart below. In conclusion, the poll revealed that the PWBI for June 2020 stood at 57.6-points. The economic index was ranked the lowest and this is not unconnected with the reality and challenges posed by COVID-19 outbreak in the country. Therefore, addressing the current economic challenges will require the government to put in place an interim measure such as providing palliatives to Nigerians especially in the informal sector who depend on daily income for survival. This action will temporally yield sustained and real progress thereby raising the well-being of all Nigerians. Survey Methods The Personal Well Being Index Poll was conducted in the week commencing June 29, 2020. The PWBI involved telephone interviews of a random nationwide sample. 1,000 randomly selected phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geopolitical zones in the country, were interviewed. With a sample of this size, we can say with 95% confidence that the results obtained are statistically precise – within a range of plus or minus 4.65%. NOIPolls Limited, No1 for country specific polling services in West Africa. We conduct periodic opinion polls and studies on various socio-economic and political issues in Nigeria. More information is available at www.noi-polls.com. Disclaimer This press release has been produced by NOIPolls Limited to provide information on all issues which form the subject matter of the document. Kindly note that while we are willing to share results from our polls with the general public, we only request that NOIPolls be acknowledged as author whenever and wherever our poll results are used, cited or published. NOIPolls hereby certifies that all the views expressed in this document accurately reflect its views of respondents surveyed for the poll, and background information is based on information from various sources that it believes are reliable; however, no representation is made that it is accurate or complete. Whilst reasonable care has been taken in preparing this document, no responsibility or liability is accepted for errors or fact or for any views expressed herein by NOIPolls for actions taken as a result of information provided in this report. Any ratings, forecasts, estimates, opinions or views herein constitute a judgment as at the date of this document. If the date of this document is not current, the views and content may not reflect NOIPolls’ current findings or thinking. Press Contact Email: editor@noi-polls.com cakubue@noi-polls.com badedoyin@noi-polls.com Number: +234 (0) 9 – 290 4162 +234 (0) 9 – 291 4877

  • Lack of Trust in Law Enforcement Agencies Blamed for Jungle Justice in Nigeria

    Abuja, Nigeria. January 28th , 2014– Latest weekly poll results released by NOIPolls Limited have revealed that 51% of Nigerians, representing the majority, attribute the high prevalence of jungle justice in the country to a “lack of trust in the law enforcement agencies”.  In addition, the majority of Nigerians (94%) affirm there is a high prevalence of jungle justice/mob attack in Nigeria and describes it as “a wicked and barbaric act” (60%). More findings revealed that almost half of Nigerians (an alarming 43%)have personally witnessed these acts of jungle justice/mob attacks in their localities, while 16%have known the victims of jungle justice/mob attacks. These were the key findings from theJungle Justice/Mob Attack in Nigeria Snap Poll conducted in the week of January 20th 2014. Jungle justice has been defined as when a population, precisely an irate mob, takes into their hands the right to execute punishment on alleged offenders of a heinous crime[1]. Jungle justice/mob attacks are generally characterised by the stripping of accused persons of their fundamental human right of fair hearing and the opportunity to defend themselves. The occurrence and increasing frequency of these attacks that sometimes result in the extra judicial killing of Nigerians has generated growing concern among the populace. With several cases being reported all over Nigeria, some documented in the media include the gruesome killings in October 2012 of four undergraduate students of the University of Port Harcourt for allegedly stealing phones and laptops commonly referred to as “Aluu 4”. In another hideous incident, a 12-year-old boy was burnt alive in the Ikorodu area of Lagos for allegedly attempting to lure and kidnap another boy. Anecdotal evidence has revealed that some Nigerians engage in jungle justice/mob attack acts under the canopy of vigilante groups. An instance is the recent incident in Ejigbo Local Government of Lagos State where three young women were stripped naked and sexually assaulted for allegedly stealing pepper in the market by members of the vigilante group responsible for security in the market. The rising occurrence of Jungle justice/mob attacks has generated several reactions from different groups of Nigerians. One of which is the recent protest march organised by Nollywood stars campaigning against domestic violence and jungle justice in Nigeria stimulated by the same case of the three women in Ejigbo market in Lagos State.[2] Against this background, NOIPolls conducted its recent poll on Jungle Justice/ mob attack to seek the views of Nigerians on the prevalence of the issue, causes as well as possible measure to curb the incidence of Jungle Justice in Nigeria. Respondent to the poll were asked six specific questions.  The first question sought the opinion of Nigerians regarding the occurrence of jungle justice or mob attacks. Respondents were asked: In your opinion, to what extent are acts of jungle justice or mob attacks prevalent in Nigeria? The overall majority (94%: 65%+29%) say the acts of jungle justice or mob attacks are prevalent in Nigeria while only 6% of the respondents indicated that it is “not prevalent at all”. Analysis according to geo-political zones revealed that all respondents from the North-East zone (100%) were of the opinion that the acts of jungle justice or mob attacks are prevalent in the country. This is followed by the South-West zone with 94% while the North-West and the South-South zones recorded 93% each. In addition, the South-East zone had the highest (10%)proportion of respondents that say it is “not prevalent at all. [1] Jungle Justice, the Most Salient Sign of a Dysfunctional System: A Comparative Analysis of the Bakassi Boys and Aluu Community – Chinyere Ugomma Eze-Nliam [2] www.punchng.com Subsequently, in order to ascertain the thoughts of Nigerians regarding jungle justice, respondents were asked: In your own words, how would you describe the acts of jungle justice or mob attack? Findings reveal varied responses. Overall, the majority of Nigerians(60%) describe jungle justice or mob attacks as “a wicked and barbaric act”, while 19% describe it as “people taking law into their hands”. Furthermore, 5% say it is a “wrong act of punishment” and another 5% say “it is unjust and unlawful” also 4% say it is dehumanising. On the contrary, a meager 4% have the view that “it is good sometimes in order to deter others” from criminal acts. From the geo-political zones perspective, the North-West zone (57%) had the highest proportion of respondents that believe “it’s a wicked and barbaric act” and the North-East and North-West zones both had same and highest (24%) proportion of Nigerians who describe jungle justice/mob attacks as “people taking the law into their hands”. Also, the North-East zone(12%) represented the majority of respondents that think “it is good sometimes in order to deter others”. Furthermore, in order to establish the proportion of Nigerians who have witnessed  any act of Jungle justice/mob attacks, respondents were asked: Have you personally witnessed any act of jungle justice or mob attack in your locality? The results reveal that almost half of Nigerians (an alarming 43%) have personally witnessed the act of jungle justice in their localities while 57% have never been witnesses. It is noteworthy to know that more male Nigerians (49%) than females (36%) have been witnesses of jungle justice/ mob attack acts. Further analysis across geo-political zones illustrates that the North-East and South-East zones had the same and highest proportions (50%) of respondents that have been witnesses of acts of jungle justice. This is followed by the North-Central zone with 45%. The fourth question aimed to measure the proportion of Nigerians who know victims of Jungle justice/mob attack acts, respondents were asked: Do you know any victim of acts of jungle justice or mob attack in your locality? Findings revealed that the majority (84%) of Nigerians claim they do not know any victim of jungle justice/mob attack while 16% know victims of jungle justice in their locality. The results also depicts that more males (23%) than females(9%) know victims of jungle justice/mob attacks. An assessment by geo-political zones reveals that the South-South zone with 19% accounts for the highest proportion of respondents who know victims of jungle justice/ mob attack. This is followed by the North-East zone with 18% and the North-Central zone with 16%. Subsequently, respondents were asked: In your opinion, what are the factor(s) responsible for the prevalence of jungle justice or mob attacks in the country?Majority (51%) of Nigerians attributed the prevalence of jungle justice to a “lack of trust in law enforcement agencies” this is followed by 43% who blame the prevalence to “illiteracy/lack of awareness of laws” and 26% of respondents who blame it on “lack of trust in the Nigerian judicial system”. Other factors include “the demand for quick criminal justice” 13%, “Religious/cultural beliefs” 8% and “Unemployment” 6%. From the geo-political zone standpoint, the North-West zone (61%) accounts for the highest proportion of respondents that attributes the prevalence of jungle justice to “lack of trust on law enforcement agencies”. While the North-Central zone (53%) had the highest proportion that blames the acts on “illiteracy/lack of awareness on laws” and the South-East zone (35%) had the highest proportion of respondents that blame the prevalence on “lack of trust on the Nigerian judicial system. Finally, in order to seek public opinion on how these attacks can be curbed, respondents were asked: What measure(s) do you feel could be taken to curb the acts of jungle justice or mob attack in Nigeria?Theoverall majority (50%) suggested that in order to curtail jungle justice, more “awareness on the rule of law / constitution” should be created. This is followed by 37% of the respondents who suggest there should be “highly effective law enforcement operatives” and 22% who advocate for “punishment for offenders”. In addition, while20% of the respondents suggest “timely enforcement of laws”, a relatively small 4% think the creation of employment would curb the prevalence of jungle justice/mob attack in Nigeria. Analysis based on geo-political zone reveals that the North-East zone (62%) has the highest proportion of Nigerians that suggest “awareness on the rule of laws / constitution” should be created while the North-East zone accounts for the highest proportion of respondents that advocate for “highly effective law enforcement operatives”. In addition, the highest proportion of respondents that advocate “punishment for offenders”, were from the North-West zone with 27%. In conclusion, the findings from these current polls have revealed that the majority of Nigerians (94%) affirm there is a high prevalence of jungle justice/mob attack in Nigeria and the majority (53%) describe it as “a bad act”. More findings reveal that 43% of Nigerians have personally witnessed the acts of jungle justice/mob attack in their localities and 16% know victims of jungle justice/mob attacks. Furthermore, the poll revealed that 51%of Nigerians, representing the majority, have attributed the prevalence of jungle justice to “lack of trust on the law enforcement agencies while 43% blame “illiteracy/lack of awareness of law”. In addition, 50% of the respondents identified awareness of rule of law/ constitution as a measure for curb the acts of jungle justice/mob attack in Nigeria. Finally, while efforts are being made to create awareness of the rule of law, it is also pertinent that urgent attention be given to other identified facets of the issue, especially those associated with lack of trust in law enforcement and the judiciary system as addressing these will create a ripple effect that will ultimately curb the incidence of jungle justice in Nigeria. Survey Methods The opinion poll was conducted in January 20th to 22nd 2014. It involved telephone interviews of a random nationwide sample. 1,000 randomly selected phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geopolitical zones in the country, were interviewed. With a sample of this size, we can say with 95% confidence that the results obtained are statistically precise – within a range of plus or minus 3%. NOIPolls Limited, No1 for country specific polling services in West Africa, which works in technical partnership with the Gallup Organisation (USA), to conduct periodic opinion polls and studies on various socio-economic and political issues in Nigeria. More information is available at www.noi-polls.com Disclaimer This press release has been produced by NOIPolls Limited to provide information on all issues which form the subject matter of the document. Kindly note that while we are willing to share results from our polls with the general public, we only request that NOIPolls be acknowledged as author whenever and wherever our poll results are used, cited or published. NOIPolls hereby certifies that all the views expressed in this document accurately reflect its views of respondents surveyed for the poll, and background information is based on information from various sources that it believes are reliable; however, no representation is made that it is accurate or complete. Whilst reasonable care has been taken in preparing this document, no responsibility or liability is accepted for errors or fact or for any views expressed herein by NOIPolls for actions taken as a result of information provided in this report. Any ratings, forecasts, estimates, opinions or views herein constitute a judgment as at the date of this document. If the date of this document is not current, the views and content may not reflect NOIPolls’ current findings and/or thinking. Press Contact The Editor Email: editor@noi-polls.com

  • 9 In 10 Nigerians Express Support for Laws to Restrict and Regulate Smoking

    Abuja, Nigeria. March 25th, 2014 – Latest weekly poll results released by NOIPolls Limited has revealed that majority of Nigerians (84%) believe that tobacco smoking has become highly predominant in Nigeria; indicating that this high predominance is observed mainly amongst males (88%) between the ages of 18 to 25 years (47%) and 26 to 40 years (26%). The poll further revealed that the vast majority of those polled (94%)believe that smoking of cigarettes and other tobacco products are very harmful to individuals, while 80% think passive or second hand smoking pose serious health hazard to non-smokers. In this regard, majority of Nigerians (88%) have expressed support for laws that would restrict and regulate tobacco smoking in Nigeria, with more support generally from respondents who have never smoked and least support from respondents who smoke regularly. These were the key findings from the Anti-Tobacco Special Edition Poll conducted in the week ofFebruary 17th 2014. Brief Background In the recent times, there has been a global awakening on the adverse effects of tobacco consumption and different countries have risen up to fight against the growing casualty from its consumption. The United States, England and China are some of the countries that have banned smoking in public places. In Nigeria, an example was recently set by the Lagos State House of Assembly, banning smoking in public places in January 2014. In line with this, stakeholders suggest that the next phase of stopping the product from harming more people is through proactive legislation in the country, particularly the National Tobacco Control Bill. [[1]] The National Tobacco Control Bill was initiated by Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth to regulate the production, sales, marketing and distribution of tobacco products in Nigeria. The bill which also prohibits the sale of cigarettes to minors, smoking in public places and the sale of cigarettes in single sticks is currently awaiting presidential approval. Similarly the Nigeria Tobacco Control Alliance (NTCA); a national coalition of tobacco and cancer control organizations working at the National level for policy shift stated that an Increment in cigarette tax which has been proposed to the Federal government by Health practitioners and tobacco control experts will discourage more smokers, raise state revenue and enable the achievement of public health policy goals such as discouraging the use of tobacco.[2] Against this background, NOIPolls was approached by the Anti-tobacco campaign group “TobaccoFreeKids” to poll on this highly important issue. The questionnaire was designed by NOIPolls with input from members of the TobaccoFreeKids group. Respondents to the poll were asked eight specific questions; five of those questions are presented in this results release. To obtain the full report; click here or contact contact editor@noi-polls.com or visit www.noi-polls.com The main objectives of the survey were to gauge the perception of Nigerians on the predominance of Tobacco consumption/smoking nationwide by gender and age; to ascertain the tobacco consumption/smoking status of Nigerians; to gauge the awareness of Nigerians on the negative effects of primary and passive (second-hand) Tobacco consumption/smoking and to determine the level of ratification of Nigerians on laws and policies to regulate the use of Tobacco in Nigeria. The first question sought the opinions of Nigerians on the prevalence of tobacco smoking. Respondents were asked: In your opinion, how predominant is tobacco consumption / smoking in Nigeria? The overall majority of respondents (84%) believe that tobacco smoking has become highly predominant in Nigeria, while15% are of the view that it is somewhat predominant. A meagre 1% indicated that it is not predominant at all. Further analysis, by geo-political zones, indicates that the North-East zone (90%) has the highest proportions of respondents that said it is highly predominant. This is followed by the North-West zone with 65%, while the North-Central zone has the largest proportion of respondents that claim it is somewhat predominant. [1]www.vanguardng.com [2] Nigeria Tobacco Control Alliance In order to gauge the tobacco consumption history of respondents, they were asked: Which of the following statements applies to you? (1) I have never smoked tobacco; (2) I used to smoke tobacco but I have given up now; (3) I smoke tobacco sometimes, but I don’t smoke regularly; (4) I smoke tobacco regularly. Findings show that the majority (88%) of the respondents claimed they have never smoked tobacco. This is followed by 7% who claim they used to smoke tobacco but have given up now. A meagre 3% of the respondents indicated they smoke tobacco regularly while 2% claimed they sometimes smoke tobacco but not regularly. Analysis by gender reveals that more females (96%) than male (78%) claim they have they have never smoked tobacco at all. Analysis by the geo-political zone reveals the North East zone has the highest proportion of respondent that smoke tobacco regularly (7%). In addition, the South-South (10%) and the South-West (10%) zones both account for the highest proportion of respondents that used to smoke tobacco but have given it up, while the North-Central and the South-West zones with 4% each account for the highest proportion of respondents that smoke tobacco sometimes but not regularly. Analysis based on the age-group shows that the highest proportion of respondents that used to smoke but have given up and smoke regularly are within the age group of 30-45 years with 12% and 4% respectively. In addition, the highest proportion of Nigerians that smoke tobacco sometimes but not regularly are within the age group of 60 years and above (10%). Subsequently, respondents were asked: To what extent would you support the law that would restrict or strictly regulate tobacco consumption/cigarette smoking? Overall, the majority of respondents(88%) stated that they would strongly support the law; 4% of the respondents say they would somewhat support and 4% were neutral in their stance. Further analysis across geo-political zones shows that the North-Central zone has the highest proportion of respondents (93%) that affirm they would strongly support the law; this is followed by the North-West zone with 91% and the North-East zone with 90%. Once again, cross analysis of the responses by tobacco consumption history reveals that the largest proportion(92%) of respondents that say they would strongly support the law that will regulate tobacco products are respondents that have never smoked tobacco while the highest proportion (20%) of respondents that say that they would strongly oppose the law are respondents who smoke regularly, however the majority (56%) of regular smokers claim they would support the law. In addition, the highest proportion of respondents who areneutral about the law that would restrict and strictly regulate tobacco consumption and cigarette smoking are respondents who smoke tobacco sometimes but not regularly. Finally, respondents were asked: To what extent would you support or oppose the implementation of the following proposed policies by the government to reduce tobacco use in Nigeria? (a) Prohibiting smoking entirely inside most public places, including all work places, public buildings offices, schools, restaurants and bars. Findings show that the vast majority of respondents affirm they strongly support the implementation of the policies by the government to “prohibit smoking entirely inside most public places” (92%). Analysis of the support of anti-tobacco policies by tobacco consumption history reveals that the largest proportion of respondents (95%) who say they would strongly support the policy that prohibits smoking entirely inside most public places, are respondents who have never smoked tobacco, while the highest proportion (18%) of respondents who say they would strongly oppose the policy are respondents who smoke regularly. However, the majority (51%) of the regular smokers claim they would support this policy, though this group has the lowest level of support among all groups. In conclusion, the majority of respondents (84%) believe that tobacco smoking is highly predominant in Nigeria, especially amongst males (88%) between the ages of 18 to 25 years (47%) and 26 to 40 years (26%). Also, the vast majority of those polled (94%) believe that smoking of cigarettes and other tobacco products are very harmful to individuals, and have expressed support for laws that would restrict and regulate tobacco smoking in Nigeria (88%). This anti-tobacco special edition poll has provided clear evidence on the widespread support for the restriction and regulation of smoking and tobacco consumption in Nigeria; thus providing scientific data to deepen the discussion by anti-tobacco campaigners. We therefore suggest that in forging ahead with a National Tobacco Control Bill, evidence-based legislation that meets international public health standards and benchmarks is given careful consideration, particularly the approaches adopted in countries that have successfully implemented similar legislation with considerable progress. Finally, we hope the results from this poll provide the needed public support for the campaigns by TobaccoFreeKids and National Tobacco Control Alliance; as well as stimulate the Federal Government to provide necessary attention to the National Tobacco Control Bill (NTCB) in order to ensure its smooth passage. Survey Methods The opinion poll was conducted in February 17th to 19th 2014. It involved telephone interviews of a random nationwide sample. 1,000 randomly selected phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geopolitical zones in the country, were interviewed. With a sample of this size, we can say with 95% confidence that the results obtained are statistically precise – within a range of plus or minus 3%. NOIPolls Limited, No1 for country specific polling services in West Africa, which works in technical partnership with the Gallup Organisation (USA), to conduct periodic opinion polls and studies on various socio-economic and political issues in Nigeria. More information is available at www.noi-polls.com Disclaimer This press release has been produced by NOIPolls Limited to provide information on all issues which form the subject matter of the document. Kindly note that while we are willing to share results from our polls with the general public, we only request that NOIPolls be acknowledged as author whenever and wherever our poll results are used, cited or published. NOIPolls hereby certifies that all the views expressed in this document accurately reflect its views of respondents surveyed for the poll, and background information is based on information from various sources that it believes are reliable; however, no representation is made that it is accurate or complete. Whilst reasonable care has been taken in preparing this document, no responsibility or liability is accepted for errors or fact or for any views expressed herein by NOIPolls for actions taken as a result of information provided in this report. Any ratings, forecasts, estimates, opinions or views herein constitute a judgment as at the date of this document. If the date of this document is not current, the views and content may not reflect NOIPolls’ current findings and/or thinking. Press Contact The Editor Email: editor@noi-polls.com

  • Child Rape Cases on the Rise in Nigeria

    Abuja, Nigeria. July 15th, 2014 – Our second Special Edition Snap poll for 2014 focuses on the recurring issue of Child Rape in the society. NOIPolls  worked in partnership with the Stand to End Rape Initiative (STER) to provide more information on the subject matter to support all causes geared towards ending the rape of minors in the Country.  Topline results have revealed that almost 7 in 10 Adult Nigerians (67%) think there is a high prevalence of child rape in the country while  3 in 10(31%) personally know of a victim of Child Rape in their local communities. Furthermore,almost 4 in 10 (36%) Adult Nigerians, representing the majority, claim that most often the offenders involved in the incident of child rape are close family relatives and neighbors (33%).  Also  almost half (49%) of  those that personally know a victim claim they involved children aged between 7-12 years of age and, 78% of this group mentioned these cases were reported to local police authority. Further findings revealed that majority of Adult Nigerians want the perpetrators to receive a sentence of at least 14 years in prison and also advocate enforcement of severe punishment for offenders as a way of eradicating the incidence of child rape in Nigeria. It is important to note that legal practitioners had previously argued that weak legal sanctions and enforcement in rape cases is one of the reasons why there is a low rate of rape persecution cases in Nigeria. It is not just practical to ensure maximum punishment, it is imperative that local law enforcement authorities enforce this punishment in a firm and decisive manner[1].  These were the key findings from the CHILD RAPE SPECIAL EDITION SNAP POLLconducted in the week of June 9th 2014 Child Rape is one of the most traumatizing forms of violence against children, usually committed by a person in a position of power and trust in the child’s life. While several cases are officially reported to the appropriate authorities in Nigeria, most people believe the majority of rape cases go unreported mainly because parents want to protect their children from potential stigmatization and embarrassment. 2004 witnessed the reportage of child rape cases in Kano State, 2005 further witnessed an increment in reported child rape cases that escalated to an alarming rate in 2007. Furthermore, within two months in 2008, over a hundred cases involving underage victims were reported to the police authority prompting an alarm raised by the police authority about the steady and noticeable increment in the overall number of reported child rape cases in the state.  In Lagos, the Lagos State Police Command revealed that the command had recorded 678 cases of rape between March 2012 and March 2013[2] and with an undisclosed number of the victims being underage. In recent times, the Nigerian media has reported the increased frequency of child rape cases in various parts of the Country with an example of a case, in February 2014, a 27 year old man in Osun state was arrested by the police and charged after reports that he had raped a 2 years old girl at his residence in the Ifelodun Local Government area of the state.[3] Given the brief historical background and facts provided within this report on child rape cases and the responses received from respondents, the key questions that need to be asked are ‘why is child rape on the increase in Nigeria?’ and, what should be done to curb this social anomaly? NOIPolls in partnership with the Stand to End Rape Initiative Group conducted its recent poll to seek the views of Nigerians regarding the prevalence of child rape, the reporting of child rape cases and possible remedies to address the issue. Respondents to the poll were asked eight specific questions. The first sought the opinions of Nigerians on the frequency of child rape. Respondents were asked: In your opinion, how prevalent is the issue of child rape in Nigeria (rape of persons below 18 years)? The findings reveal that the overall majority (67%: 35%+32%) think that child rape is prevalent in Nigeria while 19% are of the view that it is somewhat prevalent. In addition, 14% of the respondents surveyed indicated that it is not prevalent at all. When the results are analysed according to geo-political zones, the South-West zone has the highest quota of Nigerians (76%: 43%+34%) that think child rape is prevalent. The North-East zone had the largest ratio of respondents (28%) that stated that child rape is somewhat prevalent while the South-South zone has the highest proportion of Nigerians (29%) that think it is not prevalent at all. [1] Rape in Nigeria: New Developments – Deji Olunlade [2] www.theeagleonline.com.ng [3] www.vanguardngr.com Furthermore, in order to ascertain the proportion of those that actually know victims of child rape, respondents were asked: Do you personally know of any child that has been a victim of child rape in your locality? The result shows that slightly more than 3 in 10Nigerians (31%) personally know victims of child rape in their locality. On the other hand, 69% of the respondents claimed that they do not know of any victim of child rape in their locality. Further analysis across geo-political zones shows that the North-Central zone has the highest proportion of respondents (31%) that confirmed that they personally know victims of child rape in their locality. In addition, the South-West zone has the largest proportion (69%) of respondents that do not know of any victim of child rape in their locality. It is also pertinent to note that more females (36%) than males (25%) personally know victims of child rape in their locality. Respondents that knew victims of child rape (31% of the total) were further asked: What age category did the victim fall under? The majority (49%) stated that the victims they knew were between 7-12 years old. This is followed by 26% of respondents that knew victims aged between 13-17 years while 19% knew victims that were less than 6 years old.  Apart from the underage victims, 6% of the respondent’s indicated the victims they knew were above the age of 18 years. Exploring from the geo-political zone standpoint reveals that the North-West zone has the highest percentage of respondents that asserted they knew victims aged between 0-6 and 7-12with 27% and 56% respectively. The North-East zone has the largest quota of respondents that claimed they knew victims aged between 13-17 years. From the age-group stance, it is observed that respondents aged between 55-65 years have the highest proportion that know victims aged less than 6 years old (42%) while respondents aged between 45-54 years have the largest number of respondents that know victims aged between 7-12 years. Subsequently, respondents that knew victims of child rape (31% of the total) were also asked: Do you know if it (the rape case) was reported? In response to this question, the majority (67%) claimed that the incident was reported while 21% claimed it was not reported. In addition, 12% of the respondents indicated that they didn’t know if the incidence was reported or not. From the geo-political zones perspective, the South-East zone has the highest proportions of respondents (73%) that confirmed that the incident was reported. On the other hand, the South-West zone has the highest number of respondents that affirmed that the incidence was not reported. Additionally, the North-East zone accounted for the highest ratio of respondents (20%) that stated that they don’t know if the incidence was actually reported. Respondents who confirmed that the rape case was reported were further asked: Who was the incidence reported to? The outcome discloses that the vast majority of respondents indicated that the child rape was reported to the police (78%), followed by 9% who said it was reported to a parent/guardian. In addition, another 3% each said the child rape case was reported to religious institution and NGOs. Assessing from the geo-political zone viewpoint, the South-East zone has the largest proportion of respondents that confirmed that the incidence was reported to the police. This closely followed by the North-Central zone with 87%. All the respondents (100% each) between the age-group of 19-34 years and 55-65 years indicated that most child rape incidences was reported to the police. All respondents (whether they knew a child rape victim or not) were asked: Which category of persons would you consider as the most offenders of child rape in Nigeria? The findings show that the slight majority (36%) consider “close family relatives” to most often be the offenders involved in child rape in Nigeria. This is followed by 33% of respondents that think it is“home neighbor”, “strangers” (28%), “House help/Nannies” (25%) and “family friends” (20%). Furthermore, 16% say is perpetrated by “unemployed people” whereas 4% blamed it on other factors. Evaluating from the geo-political viewpoint, the South-East zone and the South-West zone have the highest proportion of respondents saying it is close family relatives with 41% each. The North-West zone and the North-East zone have the largest number of respondents stating home, neighbors and strangers with 38% and 45% respectively. Also, the age-group 19-24years has the highest fraction of respondents that believe it is mostly done by strangers. In order to seek the views of Nigerians regarding penalty for child rape offenders, respondents were asked: What punishment do you think is befitting for child rapists in Nigeria? The vast majority of respondents (65%) think that prison sentences of 14 years should be the penalty for offenders, whereas 17% feel that the death penalty should be the punishment and11% think they should be in rehabilitative custody. From the geo-political zone standpoint, the South-South zone has the highest percentage(77%) of Nigerians that indicated prison sentence of 14 years should be punishment for offenders. The North-East zone accounted for the the largest ratio of those that said death penalty and the North-central zone has the largest quota of Nigerians that believed they should be in rehabilitative custody. Finally, respondents were asked: In your own words, what should be done to eradicate the incidence of child rape in Nigeria? 30% of Nigerians believe that “enforcing severe punishment” would help eradicate child rape in Nigeria. This is followed by “Good parental upbringing” (21%), “Public enlightenment campaign” (16%), “Education on moral values and sex”(11%) and “Job creation” (8%). Assessing from the geo-political zone view, the South-East has the highest proportion of respondents (42%)  that think “enforcing severe punishment” could help eradicate child rape while the South-West accounted for the largest ratio (25%) of Nigerians that stated “good parental upbringing”. In addition, the North-Central zone has the highest (19%) that said “public enlightenment campaign”, whereas the North-East has the largest numbers of those that feels “education on moral values and sex” would help eradicate the incidence of child rape. Furthermore, respondents in the 35-44 years age-group have the highest percentage of respondents (35%) that think “enforcing severe punishment” would help eradicate child rape,40% of those aged between 55-65 years think “good parental upbringing” while 38% of those aged between 19-24 years think “job creation” would also help eradicate child rape in Nigeria. In conclusion, current poll results have revealed that the majority of Nigerians (67%) affirm there is a high prevalence of child rape in Nigeria and 31% know victims of child rape in their localities. The majority of those that personally know victims of child rape (49%) claim the victims are aged between 7-12 years and 78% of these persons claim these cases were reported to the police. Furthermore, 65% want the perpetrators to be sentenced to 14 years in prison and the majority advocate enforcement of severe punishment for offenders (30%) as a way of eradicating the incidence of child rape in Nigeria. It is important to note that legal practitioners had previously argued that weak legal sanctions and enforcement in rape cases is one of the reasons why there is a low rate of rape persecution cases in Nigeria. It is not just practical to ensure maximum punishment, it is imperative that local law enforcement authorities enforce this punishment in a firm and decisive manner[4]. Please click on this link to download a full copy of the Child Rape Special Edition Snap Poll Report Survey Methods The opinion poll was conducted in June 9th to 11th 2014. It involved telephone interviews of a random nationwide sample. 1,000 randomly selected phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geopolitical zones in the country, were interviewed. With a sample of this size, we can say with 95% confidence that the results obtained are statistically precise – within a range of plus or minus 3%. NOIPolls Limited, No.1 for country-specific polling services in West Africa, which works in technical partnership with the Gallup Organisation (USA), to conduct periodic opinion polls and studies on various socio-economic and political issues in Nigeria. More information is available at www.noi-polls.com Disclaimer This press release has been produced by NOIPolls Limited to provide information on all issues which form the subject matter of the document. Kindly note that while we are willing to share results from our polls with the general public, we only request that NOIPolls be acknowledged as author whenever and wherever our poll results are used, cited or published. NOIPolls hereby certifies that all the views expressed in this document accurately reflect its views of respondents surveyed for the poll, and background information is based on information from various sources that it believes are reliable; however, no representation is made that it is accurate or complete. Whilst reasonable care has been taken in preparing this document, no responsibility or liability is accepted for errors or fact or for any views expressed herein by NOIPolls for actions taken as a result of information provided in this report. Any ratings, forecasts, estimates, opinions or views herein constitute a judgment as at the date of this document. If the date of this document is not current, the views and content may not reflect NOIPolls’ current findings and/or thinking. Press Contact The Editor Email: editor@noi-polls.com

  • From the CEO

    Greetings from the NOIPolls team! We hope your year has been great. The year 2018 has been a remarkable year for the organization. We have continued to provide the much-needed data and timely information on Nigeria to users in Africa and across the globe. We have also repositioned ourselves to better serve our audience. For our final release of the year 2018, I have selected five key polls obtained from the nationwide polling exercises we have done this year. These I believe require intensified level of attention across the Nation as we head towards interesting times in our country. I hope you find them interesting and as usual will deeply appreciate any feedback from you. We are most grateful to our partners who have supported this activity throughout the year giving voice to the many Nigerians who otherwise have not being exposed to opinion polling. Our sincere appreciation goes to you for a good business relationship and reliable friendship. We are sending you heartfelt wishes for peace, joy, and abundance this holiday season as we look forward to serving you in the coming year. Merry Christmas and a very happy New Year. Don’t forget to follow us on twitter @NOIPolls and Facebook www.facebook.com/NoiPolls.com for daily news updates. Also visit our website at www.noi-polls.com to see all other polls Best regards, Dr. Chike Nwangwu CEO, NOIPolls Highlights of some polls conducted in 2018 CVR – https://www.noi-polls.com/root/index.php?pid=474&ptid=1&parentid=12 A poll conducted in January 2019 to assess the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) revealed that Nigerians scored the exercise 57 percent, indicating an average assessment. The poll which consisted of a mix of telephone and on-the-ground face-to-face interviews at registration centres around the FCT further revealed that about 8 in 10 (81 percent) fresh registrants stated that they experienced some challenges at registration centres such as: Long Queues (35 percent), Distance to Registration Centres (25 percent), Inadequate Computer Systems (19 percent), Late arrival of INEC Officials (16 percent); Poor Communication Skills of INEC Officials (11 percent), and Inadequate Personnel (7 percent) to mention a few. Interestingly, the on-the-ground face-to-face assessment of the exercise gave enumerators the opportunity to observe and hear directly from prospective registrants, who complained of having to wake up as early as 3:00 am to visit registration centres and still experience difficulty registering due to long queues and the sheer number of people coming out to register. In some specific instances, out of over 200 names on an attendance list at a centre, only about 30 prospective registrants got registered daily due to inadequacy of INEC officials and computer systems. The poll found that most registration centres had only a single laptop computer, which had the capacity to register about 30 to 40 people daily without technical disruptions. International Women’s Day Poll – https://www.noi-polls.com/root/index.php?pid=480&ptid=1&parentid=12 In commemoration of the International Women’s Day (IWD) which is observed annually on March 8th, NOIPolls conducted a poll in March 2018 which revealed that 91 percent of adult Nigerians acknowledged that there is a huge gap in gender equality especially in political representation, mainly due to cultural norms and religious beliefs (29 percent). Interestingly, the poll results also revealed that majority of Nigerians (85 percent) believe that women make great leaders and this assertion cuts across gender, geo-political zones and age-groups. More findings from the poll revealed that majority of the respondents who think that there is gender inequality blamed cultural norms and religious beliefs (29 percent). Also, 17 percent of the respondents were of the opinion that gender inequality exists in Nigeria is because women are perceived to be weak and lack the capacity to lead amongst all other mentions. On the other hand, respondents who thought that there is gender equality were further asked to state the reason for their assertion and most respondents (37 percent) stated that there is gender equality as they notice lots of women in politics in Nigeria. 25 percent also mentioned that women have equal constitutional rights in the country, while 16 percent of the respondents mentioned that representation should be by merit and not gender. Buhari’s Approval Ratings – https://www.noi-polls.com/root/index.php?pid=494&parentid=12&ptid=1 In commemoration of President Buhari’s 3rd year in office, NOIPolls released figures from its monthly approval rating for the 3-year period (June 2015 to May 2018). The results revealed that over the last three years the President’s job performance rating has taken a downward plunge, plummeting from his highest rating of 78 percent and 80 percent recorded in September and October 2015, to 37 percent recorded in August 2016 and more recently 38 percent and 39 percent in the months of February and April 2018 respectively. In more specific terms, the average approval rating of the president in 2018 stood below average at 39.6 percent; with his latest rating at 41 percent in May 2018 as at the time of the release. Furthermore, Nigerians also appraised the performance of President Buhari on specific indicators using a Likert scale of 1 to 5, where 1 represents Very Poor and 5 represents Excellent. Starting off with his 3 cardinal policy thrusts: the president was rated 43 percent on Security; 32 percent on Corruption; and 16 percent on the Economy. Similarly, he scored 34 percent on Agriculture and Food Security, 27 percent on Power, 25 percent on Healthcare, 24 percent on Education, 21 percent on Infrastructure, 15 percent on Job Creation, and 12 percent on Poverty Alleviation. Overall, from the 10 key indicators analyzed, President Buhari was rated poorly on 9 indicators, with only 1 indicator rated slightly below average (security) Security Poll – https://www.noi-polls.com/root/index.php?pid=520&ptid=1&parentid=14 A poll conducted in May 2018 revealed that that 7 in 10 (65 percent) Nigerians believe the nation is not secure, thus indicating a poor state of security in Nigeria. The North-East (55 percent) accounted for the highest proportion of Nigerians who had a negative perception on security. These findings were not surprising considering the rising spate of violent extremism over the years which have been a major source of insecurity especially in the North-East. The poll also sought to measure the perception of respondents on peculiar security challenges they are facing in their immediate environment and findings revealed ‘‘armed robbery’’ (25 percent), ‘’herdsmen/famers clashes’’ (14 percent) and ‘’kidnapping’’ (8 percent) as the top three security challenges in Nigeria. It is worthy to note that while armed robbery was mostly lamented by respondents in the South-East zone (38 percent), respondents in the North-East zone (48 percent) indicated Boko-Haram as the major security threat they are facing. In addition, respondents in the North-Central (33 percent) did not hesitate to mention “herdsmen/famers clashes” given the high occurrence of these clashes in this zone. The poll also revealed that almost 7 in 10 (69 percent) Nigerians do not know any security helpline to call in an emergency, implying that most Nigerians are unable to report any emergency security issue when the need arises. During the course of this poll, majority of the respondents complained of their inability to recall the eleven digits security mobile numbers provided by the Nigerian Police and advocated on the spot that the Nigerian Police should have a three (3) digits number for all emergencies. The poll also gauged the perception of Nigerians on how well-equipped security operatives are in tackling security challenges and findings revealed that 24 percent of respondents stated that security operatives are “not well quipped” to tackle security challenges. On the other hand, 43 percent believed that they are “well equipped “and the North-East zone (56 percent) had the largest proportion of Nigerians who mentioned this. This could be attributed to the heavy presence of armed forces with heavy weaponry due to the ongoing fight against insurgency in the region. Information technology (IT) plays a critical role in strengthening security against potential future attacks hence, it is vital for Nigerian security operatives to synergize with relevant stakeholders and adopt the use of 3-digit security helpline to enable Nigerians share information more readily as soon as they identify potential threats. Fake news – https://www.noi-polls.com/root/index.php?pid=508&parentid=14&ptid=1 A poll conducted in August 2018 revealed that new media (social media, blogs, etc.) is a major breeding ground for fake news in the country as indicated by 67 percent of Nigerians. More findings revealed that radio (39 percent) remained the primary source of information for most Nigerians despite the emergence of social media. Also, perception on trust across media platforms regarding authentic information dissemination showed that Nigerians are more likely to trust information from traditional media; Television (59 percent), Radio (53 percent) and Newspaper (48 percent)) than other sources such as Facebook, Word of mouth, Instagram, etc. The poll results also revealed that the issue of fake news is very prevalent in the country as indicated by 93 percent of the respondents interviewed. The effects of fake news cannot be over emphasized as it is capable of upsetting the country’s social balance. In line with this, a larger share (35 percent) of Nigerians lamented that fake news is capable of promoting and encouraging hatred and violence whereas, 25 percent believe it can cause panic and tension amongst other negative effects. In an attempt to create awareness on these effects of fake news in the nation, the Federal Government launched a national campaign against fake news, an initiative which 56 percent of the respondents claim to be unaware of. This implied that more effort must be made in spreading the campaign especially at grassroots level. In line with this, 30 percent of the respondents stated that there should be sensitization on the dangers of rumour mongering and the spread of fake news in the country. Lastly, the poll revealed he need for to tackle the challenge of fake news as 25 percent of the respondents suggested promoting professionalism amongst journalists in both traditional media and social media in Nigeria.

  • NIGERIAN JUDICIAL SYSTEM PERCEPTION POLL RESULT

    New Poll; 88 Percent of Nigerians Say Corruption Is Prevalent In the Judicial System Abuja, Nigeria. August 25th, 2020 – A new public opinion poll conducted by NOIPolls reveals that most Nigerians (88 percent) consider corruption to be prevalent in the Nigerian Judicial system, with only 33 percent (i.e. 4 percent ‘very confident’ + 29 percent ‘confident’) disclosing they repose any level of confidence in the Nigerian Judicial system at all. This is coming after some action has been seen to be taken in sanitizing the judiciary such as; the suspension of the previous Chief Justice of Nigeria[1] on allegations of corruption, and the arrest of two Supreme Court judges over allegations of corruption[2]. In both examples, the actors voluntarily stepped aside from their roles. The poll further revealed that only a sliver of the population (18 percent) had had direct experience or knew someone who had experience with the judicial system in the past one year. However, about two-thirds (63 percent) of this population described their experience with the judicial system as being negative, citing reasons such as ‘bribe was demanded’, ‘bias in judgment’, ‘justice was sold for money’ and ‘delay proceedings and regular adjournment’ as some of the top factors why their experience was negative. On the whole, Nigerians were asked to rate the judicial system on a scale of 1-10 where 1 is very poor and 10 is excellent. A subpar nationwide score of 4.25 was ascribed to the Nigerian Judicial system. Nigerians were also asked their expectations of the judicial system and some of the top responses were; ‘Fear of God and sincerity to the oath of office’ (32 percent), ‘Stop giving pardons to corrupt politicians’ (20 percent), ‘Fair judgement for all citizens’ and ‘Overhaul and grant autonomy to the Nigerian Judicial system’ (at 15 percent each), a ‘corrupt-free judicial system’ (13 percent) among others. Therefore, addressing these pervasive concerns will garner public support and restore the eroding confidence in the judicial system. These are some of the key highlights from the Nigerian Judicial System poll conducted in the week commencing August, 10th 2020. Survey Background As the fight against corruption in the country rages on, there are allegations purported that the Judiciary, which is a microcosm of the larger society, is replete with corruption. The Judiciary, one of the three arms of government, is tasked with providing an interpretation of the law, determining the constitutionality of the law, and applying it to individual cases. As a critical ally in the fight against corruption, the judicial system is supposed to try cases of corruption and if found guilty, convict them. But some would argue, how are these convictions to be secured if the appointed judges to secure these convictions are not the very best the country can offer? Part of the challenge stems from the fact that all superior court judges in Nigeria are appointed following the recommendation of the National Judicial Council. In a petition earlier this year, some Nigerian lawyers asked President Buhari to reject 33 candidates recommended to him by the National Judicial Council (NJC) for appointment as High Court judges of the Federal Capital Territory on the grounds that they were not only “unqualified”, but were “cronies and affiliates” of top officials in the judiciary[3]. Furthermore, there are those who would argue that in the fight against corruption particularly within the judicial system, the authorities have lacked genuine desire to address the problem. They claim that on occasional cases where judges were penalized by the NJC, the penalties imposed on them were considered inadequate in most cases[4]. Other tactics employed in some public, high profile cases include unreasonable delay tactics accommodated by the courts that last in some cases as long as 14 years. In the interim of over a decade, so many things could have happened such as: the deaths of star witnesses, promotion of the judges, etc. The consequence is a systematic withdrawal of the cases, or in the best case (where the judge is promoted) starting the case de novo[5]. These and other factors contribute to negatively to the perception that the fight against corruption is not fair, as some are perceived to be possess the resources to avoid stiff penalties. Against this background, NOIPolls conducted this poll to measure Nigerians’ awareness of the function of the judicial system, as well as their perception of the judiciary. SURVEY RESULTS Awareness About two-thirds (63 percent) of Nigerians acknowledged being aware of the functions of the judicial system in Nigeria. Interestingly, on a gender analysis, we find 71 percent of males and 55 percent of females claimed to be aware of the functions of the judicial system in Nigeria. This reveals a knowledge gap in our society as almost 1 in 2 (45 percent) females, and over a third (37 percent) of Nigerians in general are unaware of the functions of one of the three arms of government as vested in the Nigerian Constitution. The North-East region had the highest proportion of residents (52 percent) who were unaware of the functions of the Nigerian Judicial system, whereas the North-West had the least (25 percent). Analysis by age demographic revealed that older adult Nigerians tend to be increasingly aware of the functions of the judicial system, than younger adult Nigerians, revealing a gap in orientation. Perception As the country battles with embedded corruption, and the government wages an anti-corruption war, the judicial system was not considered immune to the widespread corruption in the country. The perceived level of corruption in the judicial system is high as 88 percent of Nigerians considered corruption in the judicial system to be prevalent (i.e. 42 percent prevalent + 48 percent very prevalent). These proportions were largely consistent across gender, geo-political zones, and age-groups. Confidence in the Judicial System Only about a third (33 percent) of Nigerians reposed any confidence at all in the Nigerian Judicial system, with only a sliver (4 percent) indicating a high level of confidence. The majority (67 percent) expressed that they were not confident in the Nigerian Judicial system (i.e. 36 percent ‘Not confident’ + 31 percent ‘Not at all confident’). This lack of confidence in the system may not be unconnected with the perceived level of corruption within the system, and based on previous rulings of publicly known cases. Personal Experience Less than 1 in 5 (18 percent) Nigerians have had any direct experience with the judicial system in the past one year. A larger proportion of males (23 percent) to females (13 percent) disclosed that they or someone they know has had an experience with the Nigerian Judicial system. Although this appears to be a small proportion at first glance, the time frame of the past one year only may account for small proportion. Was it Positive or Negative? Of the 18 percent who have had or know someone who has experienced the judicial system in the past year, 37 percent considered their experience to have been positive, whereas 63 percent considered their experience to have been negative. As most considered their experience to be negative, it goes to show why a majority of Nigerians do not repose much confidence in the judicial system. Reasons Respondents who disclosed they or someone they know had some experience with the judicial system, were further asked reasons why their experience was positive or negative. A considerable proportion of those who indicated their experience was negative disclosed it was because ‘bribe was demanded’ (30 percent), ‘bias in judgement’ (25 percent), ‘justice was sold for money’ (18 percent), ‘justice was denied’ (13 percent), and ‘delay in proceeding and regular adjournment’ (12 percent). Of those who considered their experience positive, reasons include: ‘justice was achieved’ (53 percent), ‘fair hearing’ (21 percent), ‘verdict was well discharged’ (11 percent), ‘my case was addressed with transparency’ (9 percent), and ‘satisfied hearing and proceedings’ (6 percent). Rating All respondents were asked to rate the Nigerian Judicial system on a scale of 1-10, where 1 is very poor and 10 is excellent. The Nigerian Judicial system was rated a 4.25 which is below par. Females (4.33) rated the judicial system slightly higher than males (4.19), and the North-East residents rated the judicial system highest (5.01) amongst all geo-political zones, while the South-West rated it the least (3.48). Expectations Among the many expectations Nigerians have of the judicial system, some of the most prevalent were: ‘Fear of God and sincerity to the oath of office’ (32 percent), ‘Stop giving pardons to corrupt politicians’ (20 percent), ‘Fair judgement for all citizens’ and ‘Overhauling the Nigerian Judicial system and restoring its autonomy’ at 15 percent each among others. Other relevant expectations include; a ‘corrupt-free judicial system’ (13 percent), conducting ‘proper investigations’ (11 percent), ‘good remuneration’ (11 percent), ‘quick judicial proceeding’ (6 percent), ‘transparency’ (4 percent), ‘good interpretation of the law’ (3 percent), and integrity (3 percent). In conclusion, two-thirds (67 percent) of Nigerians expressed a lack of confidence in the Nigerian Judicial system, and an even larger proportion (88 percent) considered corruption to be rife in the judicial system. When asked reasons for the negative experience they had, many respondents cited ‘bribe was demanded’, there was ‘bias in judgement’, ‘justice was sold’ and ‘delay in proceedings and regular adjournment’ among others. These negative experiences of some may possibly have influenced the general negative perceptions held by the majority of Nigerians about the judicial system. Therefore, more work needs to be done in restoring the faith of the general public in the judicial system. Furthermore, about two-thirds (63 percent) of Nigerians disclosed that they were unaware of the function of the judicial system, revealing a huge awareness gap that can easily be filled with misinformation and rumours. The judicial system is a critically vital component in the fight against corruption, and must be considered credible enough if the fight against corruption is to be won. Survey Methods The poll was conducted in the week commencing August 10th, 2020. It involved telephone interviews of a proportionate nationwide sample of 1,000 randomly selected phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geo-political regions and 36 states and the FCT of the country. Interviews were conducted in 5 languages – Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba, Pidgin English, and English. With this sample size and selection, we are 95 percent confident that the results obtained are statistically precise within a margin of error of plus or minus 4.65 percent. We recognize that the exclusive use of telephone polling has its limitation of excluding non-phone-owning Nigerians. Nonetheless, with the country’s tele density put over 100 percent by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), we consider our telephone polling approach appropriate. Also, given the rigorous scientific process of randomization and stratification applied, we are confident of the validity of our methodology and approach. NOIPolls Limited, No1 for country specific polling services in West Africa. We conduct periodic opinion polls and studies on various socio-economic and political issues in Nigeria. More information is available at www.noi-polls.com. Disclaimer This press release has been produced by NOIPolls Limited to provide information on all issues which form the subject matter of the document. Kindly note that while we are willing to share results from our polls with the general public, we only request that NOIPolls be acknowledged as author whenever and wherever our poll results are used, cited, or published. NOIPolls hereby certifies that all the views expressed in this document accurately reflect its views of respondents surveyed for the poll, and background information is based on information from various sources that it believes are reliable; however, no representation is made that it is accurate or complete. Whilst reasonable care has been taken in preparing this document, no responsibility or liability is accepted for errors or fact or for any views expressed herein by NOIPolls for actions taken as a result of information provided in this report. Any ratings, forecasts, estimates, opinions, or views herein constitute a judgment as at the date of this document. If the date of this document is not current, the views and content may not reflect NOIPolls’ current findings and/or thinking. Press Contact Email: editor@noi-polls.com cakubue@noi-polls.com badedoyin@noi-polls.com Number: +234 (0) 9 – 290 4162 +234 (0) 9 – 291 4877 [1] Okakwu, E. 2019. Embatteled CJN Onnoghen ‘resigns’ Premium Times https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/324122-embattled-cjn-onnoghen-resigns.html [2] Okakwu, E. 2016. It is official: Nigeria Supreme Court Judges accused of corruption step down Premium TImes https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/214130-official-nigeria-supreme-court-judges-accused-corruption-step.html [3] Yahaya, H. 2020. Controvesy as NJC recommends relatives of Supreme Court judges, others to Buhari for appointments. BusinessDay https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/391898-controversy-as-njc-recommends-relatives-of-supreme-court-judges-others-to-buhari-for-appointments.html [4] Ogundipe, B.O. 2018. Is enough being done to tackle judicial corruption? International Law Office https://www.internationallawoffice.com/Newsletters/White-Collar-Crime/Nigeria/Sofunde-Osakwe-Ogundipe-Belgore/Is-enough-being-done-to-tackle-judicial-corruption [5] Folarin, S. 2019. Falana laments corruption in the judiciary, seeks reform. https://punchng.com/falana-laments-corruption-in-judiciary-seeks-reform/ #Howmanyjudgesarecorruptinnigeria #judgesandcorruption #Poll #corruptioninthejudiciary #judicialcorruption #Stopgivingpardonstocorruptpoliticians #Arejudgescorrupt

  • Unemployment and Poverty Cited as Top Reasons for Rise in Kidnapping

    Abuja, Nigeria. February 21st, 2017 –Latest public opinion poll results released by NOIPolls have revealed that majority of Nigerians  cited the level of unemployment and poverty as the two top reasons for the spate of kidnappings in the country. Greed was also mentioned by 15 percent of the respondents as another major reason why people choose kidnapping as their source of revenue.  Additionally, 60 percent stated that kidnapping is very prevalent in Nigeria and 43 percent said they had heard about some kidnap cases in their locality in the last 3 months further buttressing its prevalence. Interestingly, a minor 5 percent claimed that there hasn’t been any case or incidence of kidnapping in their neighbourhood. To provide a brief insight into the outcomes of the various kidnap cases reported in the country, a large proportion (87 percent) of the respondents who specified that they know a victim personally said that the victim was rescued while 35 percent disclosed that a ransom was paid before the abductors released the victims. Also, 16 percent indicated that the kidnappers were only arrested while 8 percent confirmed that the perpetrators were both arrested and prosecuted. This indicates the need for more vigilance and alertness on the parts of individuals while the security agencies improve on their methods of tackling such cases. Our results also show that Nigerians have high expectations for the security agencies in handling kidnap cases as almost 7 in 10 respondents (69 percent) mentioned that they would alert the security agents if they suspect any kidnapping scene. These were some of the key findings from the rate of kidnapping poll conducted in the week of February 6th, 2017. Brief Background In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person’s will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority[1]. The history of kidnapping in Nigeria started in the Niger Delta Region. The restive youths resorted to kidnapping foreign nationals at work on oil fields. They did this as a way to retaliate or revenge the unemployment and lack of development in the region. This led to the creation of the amnesty program and other youth empowerment initiatives to curb the incidences, nonetheless, the practice spread outside the Niger Delta region and this time it was for political, ransom or ritual purposes. Kidnapping and hostage-taking are often used by armed groups especially terror inclined groups as tactics to force significant concessions relating to their demands on their primary targets. And this phenomenon is on the increase on daily basis in Nigeria. The most prominent kidnapping case in Nigeria according to Amnesty international is the abduction of the Chibok girls in Borno state since 2014 by the Boko Haram sect. Also according to them, 41 alleged new cases of mass abduction by the Boko Haram sect have been unrecorded by the Nigerian government since 2014[2].  Though the Boko Haram sect do not kidnap for the purpose of getting money through ransom, their activities of kidnap has halted economic activities (farming) in the North-East geopolitical zone due to fear of being taken. While kidnapping for ransom (commonly reported) is more prominent in the South-East and South-South (Niger Delta); kidnapping for ritual purposes (uncommonly reported) is more prominent in the South-West and North Central regions while abduction (mostly unreported) is more prominent in the North-East and North-West region[3]. Prominent among the victims of high profile kidnap includes; the father of the popular novelist Chimamanda Adichie, former Finance Minister Olu Falae, A reverend Father John Adeyi, and the princess of Akoko in Ondo State Toyin Omosowon[4]. There are many causes of kidnapping; among them are unemployment, poverty, religion, political issues, religion, and corruption[5]. The practice can be reduced with more governmental involvement, stakeholder interventions and proper education. In view of this background, NOIPolls conducted a snap poll to gauge the opinions and perceptions of Nigerians regarding the rising incidences of kidnapping. Survey Findings The poll measured the prevalence of kidnapping in Nigeria and majority (60 percent) of the respondents affirmed that kidnapping is either very prevalent or prevalent in the country.  The 61+ age group had the highest (81 percent) percentage of respondents in this category. On the other hand, 25 percent said that kidnapping is either not prevalent or not prevalent at all in Nigeria while 15 percent of Nigerians indicated that kidnapping is somewhat prevalent. Further analysis by geo-political zones revealed that respondents in the South-West (74 percent), North-Central (68 percent), South-South (65 percent) and the South-East (60 percent) zones accounted for the highest percentage of Nigerians who admitted that kidnapping is prevalent in the country while the majority of respondents who opined that the issue of kidnapping is not prevalent in Nigeria are residents from the North-West (43 percent) and the North-East (33 percent) zones. In addition, the poll sought to find out the frequency of kidnapping occurrences in the country and results indicate a rise in kidnap cases in Nigeria as 43 percent (which formed the largest majority) indicated that the last time they heard about cases of kidnap within their locality was less than 3 months ago. This statement was made mainly by residents from the South-South zone, indicative of a possible rampant occurrence in the region. Likewise, 13 percent stated that they heard about a kidnap case between 4 – 6 months in their locality and 6 percent said it was between 7 – 9 months ago while 7 percent stated it’s between 10 months – 1 year since they heard about a kidnap case within their locality. Similarly, 26 percent, with majority being the residents from the South-West zone, indicated that it has been over 1 year that they heard about the case of kidnapping in their area. On the contrary, 5 percent claimed that there has never been any kidnap case within their locality and majority of respondents in this category are residents from the North-West zone (12 percent). To further substantiate the many kidnapping stories reported on various media sources and outlets in Nigeria, respondents were asked if they personally know any kidnap victim and 33 percent were affirmative, while 67 percent said they do not know any kidnap victim personally. Most of the respondents that agreed that they know a kidnap victim personally were residents from the South-East zone (46 percent). Respondents who admitted that they know a kidnap victim were asked the outcome of the kidnap and an overwhelming majority (79 percent) stated that the victims were rescued. Out of the cases of victims that were rescued, 70 percent indicated that a ransom was paid, while 20 percent reported that the kidnappers were only arrested, 9 percent disclosed that they were both arrested and prosecuted. It is therefore, pertinent that kidnappers are arrested and prosecuted in accordance to the law to serve as a deterrent to other perpetrators. Further findings revealed that unemployment (34 percent), which forms the majority, and poverty (27 percent) are perceived as the top reasons for kidnapping in Nigeria. The South-East zone had the larger proportion (53 percent) of Nigerians who stated unemployment, while the North-West, South-South and the South-West zones accounted for the highest portion of the respondents who asserted that it is as a result of poverty with 29 percent each. In the same manner, 15 percent attributed the major cause of kidnapping in Nigeria to greed/quest for quick money. Other mentions include poor economic situation (10 percent), poor security conditions (8 percent) and lack of fear of God (3 percent). Lastly, the poll sought the views of Nigerians on the actions they would take if they suspect on-going kidnapping activities and majority (69 percent) said they would alert security agencies. A smaller proportion of the respondents (15 percent) believe in the power of numbers, so they would alert the neighbourhood. The fear of becoming a potential victim alongside the intended targets also made 6 percent to declare that they would run for cover while 3 percent mentioned that they would confront the kidnappers. In conclusion, the poll has shown that majority of Nigerians (60 percent; 31 percent + 29 percent) were of the opinion that kidnapping is either very prevalent or prevalent in Nigeria while 43 percent attested that the last kidnap case in their locality is within 3 months which further buttresses the frequency of the criminal act. Perpetration of the menace of kidnappings in Nigeria was further validated by the findings of this report as 33 percent indicated that they know a victim of a previous kidnap case. The report also provided a ray of hope as a vast majority, 87 percent, confirmed that the victims of the kidnap cases they know of were rescued and 8 percent proclaimed that the perpetrators were arrested and prosecuted. Additionally, further findings showed that security agencies need to do more in successfully tackling these kidnap cases as 35 percent of the respondents reported that ransom was paid, 7 percent mentioned that the victim was killed and 6 percent disclosed that the victim is yet to be found till date. Furthermore, unemployment (34 percent) and Poverty (27 percent) have been identified as the two main reasons for the increased spate of this crime, as the perpetrators may go into this due to their poor economic situation, hence, the creation of more employment opportunities, especially for the youths, will help in the fight against crime in general in the country. As a counteractive measure, 69 percent of Nigerians have mentioned that they would quickly alert the security agencies if they suspect any kidnapping scene and for this reason, the security agencies need to improve on their techniques in tackling this menace in the country. Survey Methods The opinion poll was conducted in the week of February 6th 2017. It involved telephone interviews of a random nationwide sample. 1,000 randomly selected phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geo-political zones in the country were interviewed. With a sample of this size, we can say with 95% confidence that the results obtained are statistically precise – within a range of plus or minus 3%. NOIPolls Limited is the No1 for country specific polling services in West Africa. We conduct periodic opinion polls and studies on various socio-economic and political issues in Nigeria. More information is available at www.noi-polls.com Disclaimer This press release has been produced by NOIPolls Limited to provide information on all issues which form the subject matter of the document. Kindly note that while we are willing to share results from our polls with the general public, we only request that NOIPolls be acknowledged as author whenever and wherever our poll results are used, cited or published. NOIPolls hereby certifies that all the views expressed in this document accurately reflect its views of respondents surveyed for the poll, and background information is based on information from various sources that it believes are reliable; however, no representation is made that it is accurate or complete. Whilst reasonable care has been taken in preparing this document, no responsibility or liability is accepted for errors or fact or for any views expressed herein by NOIPolls for actions taken as a result of information provided in this report. Any ratings, forecasts, estimates, opinions or views herein constitute a judgment as at the date of this document. If the date of this document is not current, the views and content may not reflect NOIPolls’ current findings and/or thinking. Press Contact The Editor Email: editor@noi-polls.com [1] http://www.cleen.org/Crime%20and%20Public%20Safety%20in%20Nigeria.pdfRaphael%Mbaegbu [1] http://www.news24.com.ng/National/News/amnesty-records-more-cases-of-boko-haram-abductions-20170109 [1] http://www.cleen.org/Criminal%20Victimization.pdf [1] http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/general/five-recent-high-profile-kidnappings-in-nigeria/164726.html [1] https://owlcation.com/misc/Kidnapping-Overview-Causes-Effects-and-Solutions [1] http://www.cleen.org/Crime%20and%20Public%20Safety%20in%20Nigeria.pdfRaphael%Mbaegbu [2] http://www.news24.com.ng/National/News/amnesty-records-more-cases-of-boko-haram-abductions-20170109 [3] http://www.cleen.org/Criminal%20Victimization.pdf [4] http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/general/five-recent-high-profile-kidnappings-in-nigeria/164726.html [5] https://owlcation.com/misc/Kidnapping-Overview-Causes-Effects-and-Solutions

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