ELECTIONS AND A FINANCIAL CRISIS COULD CAUSE NIGERIA'S MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES TO WORSEN – EXPERT

Political unrest is nothing new in Nigeria; uncertainty, apprehension, and stress are frequently present throughout elections.

Yet in addition to the nationwide monetary shortage, the 2023 general elections could have a big effect on people's mental health.

The nation has been battling economic difficulties for a number of years, including high inflation, rising unemployment, and rising rates of poverty.

Remember that since December of last year, the cash shortage brought on by the Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) Naira redesign policy has continued to hurt the Nigerian people who are already suffering from poverty.

The cash crunch culminated amidst a revelation by the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics, NBS, that 133 million Nigerians were multidimensionally poor.

The report blamed the country's rising poverty on poor access to education, living standards, health, employment and security.

According to reports, the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that 133 million Nigerians—or 63% of the population—were multidimensionally poor in the first few days of November 2022.

As a result of the Naira redesign policy's policy somersault and confusion, it was also stated that some Nigerians lost their lives trying to get their money in banks.

Many commercial banks' gates were full before 8:00 am on Tuesday as a result of the CBN's directive on Monday that the old N500 and N1,000 notes would remain legal tender until December 31. Customers were hopeful that their suffering would come to an end.

During a press conference, Mrs. John Grace, a bank client from Kaduna State, bemoaned the fact that she had been waiting at the First Bank gate since 6:00 am and was confident she would return home with money.

Jusmana Moses, a different client of United Bank for Africa, claimed that his bank would not have any justifications to offer.

"It's either they give me new notes or old currency," he said.

The gubernatorial and state house of assemblies elections are set for March 18, but the anxiety caused by the February 25 presidential and national assembly elections has not yet subsided.

The country is in a transition, Dr. Okwudili Obayi, a consultant psychiatrist at the Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital in Abakaliki and the public relations officer of the Association of Psychiatrists in Nigeria, told Daily Post in an interview. He cautioned that the harsh economic realities and electoral activities would have an impact on people's general mental health state and behavior.

According to Obayi, situations deteriorate because individuals are struggling to get food and are experiencing high levels of anxiety, which can induce depression and other problems.

Experts have cautioned that in the middle of the faltering economy, stress brought on by anxiety over the economy and elections could raise the chance of getting depression and other mental health conditions.

The health professional also suggested that anyone struggling with mental health issues seek psychiatric care and assistance from a facility.

"We are in a transition period, and a period of transition affects human beings in different ways, coupled with economic realities and hardships. Indeed, the Naira redesign worsened the economic hardships, which led to cash scarcity. So all these will affect people's mental health and behaviour generally.

"If we take the two jointly, as I said, the transition can affect people's mental health in many ways. One is a period of campaigning for the politicians. It is a period of increased stress because of campaigns and all it takes; it is a time of stress for the politicians. It is a period of increased activities involving night activities, keeping awake longer than before watching television; if you like what they say, you spend a lot of time; if you don't like it, you get angry with that.

"The other angle has to do with the period after the election. If you like the result, you can be excited; if you don't, you can be disturbed. One's predisposition to excitement or anger can affect one's mental health.

"If you are angry with the result, yes, anything can happen. People will look at the money they have invested; people will look at the hope they expected; people will look at the expectations; all these will affect them. Even those who did not vote but were expecting a good government can feel their hopes are dashed if they don't like the outcome of the result.

"Now, in all these, you also remember that people with other responsibilities no longer attend to them as before. People leave their other work to go for campaigns, listen to people, vote and invest, in one way or the other, their time and energy in the electioneering process. All these affect the human mind, which is why it worsens when you bring it to the issue of the economy already in shambles.

"It gets worse because anxieties are high, it gets high because things are getting more challenging, and people are finding it difficult to get what to eat, which will lead to depression and other concerns.

"People have money but can't have access to cash, leading to the inability to attend to basic needs. It is affecting both the traders and the buyers. It is also affecting the average person in different ways. So that is a very major issue," he said.

Obayi urged those who become overworked or active in politics to seek access to a health center for evaluation, stressing that mental diseases would increase violent behavior, sadness, and worry.

"It gets worse because anxieties are high, it gets high because things are getting more challenging, and people are finding it difficult to get what to eat, which will lead to depression and other concerns.

"People have money but can't have access to cash, leading to the inability to attend to basic needs. It is affecting both the traders and the buyers. It is also affecting the average person in different ways. So that is a very major issue," he said.

"Now in all these, going for campaigns, campaigning for people, going to vote and staying long for results, being a thug for political candidates, and staying awake at night for one thing or the other will affect behaviour.

"All these will affect people, especially those vulnerable to developmental illness. Then those who are not vulnerable or those who have had mental illness before but may have recovered can increase the reemergence of the illness.

"Of course, we don't have the figure, but basically, mental illnesses will increase things like violent behaviour, depression and anxiety. What we call adjustment disorder will increase, and that one will not come now; it will come many months after the election.

"By adjustment disorder, we mean that people will find it difficult to adjust to the current situation. People are finding it difficult to adjust to the Naira scarcity situation.

"After the election, those who invested a lot, who failed, will find it more difficult to adjust because in every position, a very good number of people contested, and at the end of the day, only one person will emerge. So those who spent money, those who borrowed money, and those who invested either as contestants themselves or sponsoring contestants will find it difficult to adjust to the current reality months after the elections, and they will develop what we call adjustment disorder.

"Generally, the transition on its own is an issue that can affect the mental state of everybody in one way or the other," the health expert said.

He added, "Prevention is better than cure when it comes to mental illness. All the mental disorders that develop are not new; they have existed before. In this case, we are saying that economic hardship or electioneering is the major risk cause or predisposing factor. So, prevention is better than cure.

"Sometimes, there are things that we cannot prevent. The management strategy is that people who get overworked or involved in politics should get access to a health facility for evaluation. That is the first step; they should not wait for symptoms to manifest. When symptoms like poor sleep, restlessness, unnecessary easy irritability, and getting angry more than one is used to, when one notices it, one should not wait until it becomes full-blown.

"On the other hand, if somebody starts just experiencing from nowhere thoughts that he is the one that won an election when there are no facts or he has lost when he has no evidence to support either way, one should seek medical attention. Again, when one starts thinking that life is worthless, whether it is due to economic hardship or the outcome of an election, one should also seek medical attention.

"In a full-blown state of mental illness, there is a need to seek medical attention and help from a psychiatric facility.

"The Government should be sincere, and when they have good intentions or policies, they should communicate to the people and keep to whatever they have decided. A situation government says one thing and does another makes the citizenry lose confidence or hope in the government."