2015 Poll: How U.S. data firm organised anti-election rallies to stop Buhari

More revelations emerged yesterday on the extent Cambridge Analytica, the controversial data firm hired by the Goodluck Jonathan administration for two million Pounds to sway the 2015 elections in its favour, went to stop then candidate Muhammadu Buhari.

Cambridge Analytica’s parent company, the SCL Group, boasted that it had influenced voters across the world – including organising “anti-election rallies” in Nigeria to discourage people from turning out at the polling unit.

The SCL Group documents submitted by whistleblower Christopher Wylie and released by the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport committee yesterday revealed the company speaking of its “international experience” in political research citing work on multiple foreign elections.

The political consultancy used its analysis of Nigerian voters to “advise that rather than trying to motivate swing voters to vote for our clients, a more effective strategy might be to persuade opposition voters not to vote at all – an action that could be easily monitored”.

The Nation, March 30, 2018

 

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