The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned that the general election, which is months away, risks being stalled if the insecurity in parts of the country fails to improve.
The commission noted that the development could hinder the declaration of election results and precipitate a constitutional crisis.
The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, represented by the Chairman Board of Electoral Institute (BEI), Prof. Abdullahi Abdu Zuru, said this on Monday, Jan. 9, at the Validation of Election Security Training Resources in Abuja.
He said: “We all appreciate the fact that Election Security is vital to democratic consolidation through provision of enabling environment for the conduct of free, fair, credible and inclusive elections and thus strengthening the electoral process.
“Consequently, in preparations for the 2023 General elections, the commission is not leaving anything to chance in ensuring that intensive and extensive security are provided for election personnel, materials and processes.
“This is particularly significant to the commission given the current insecurity challenges in various parts the country and the fact that the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members constitute the core of the Polling Unit Election officials.
“Moreover, if the insecurity is not monitored and dealt with decisively, it could ultimately culminate in the cancellation and/or postponement of elections in sufficient constituencies to hinder declaration of elections results and precipitate constitutional crisis. This must not be allowed to happen and shall not be allowed to happen.
READ ALSO:
- 2023: Collect Your PVC Now; Obi Tells Nigerians
- Army Recruitment Not Employment Opportunity; COAS Tells Nigerians
- Obi Holds Rally in Osun, Asks Electorates To Vote Out APC, PDP
The electoral umpire however called for concerted efforts to stem the tide of violence.
According to him, to this end, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Gen. Mohammed Babagana Monguno (retd), and the Chairman, INEC have jointly assured the nation that conducive environment will be provided for successful conduct of the 2023 general election.
“Therefore, security personnel in particular and all election officials in general must be security conscious and alert to unusual activities in their environment and must be fully equipped to deal with any challenge at all times.”
“To this end, the National Security Adviser, General Mohammed Babagana Monguno, and the Chairman, INEC have jointly assured the nation that a conducive environment will be provided for the successful conduct of the 2023 general election.
“Similarly, the Inspector-General of Police, IGP, Usman Baba Alkali, has conducted election security management workshops across the six geo-political zones.
“On its part, the Commission, through The Electoral Institute, has institutionalized the development and implementation of a cascaded training mechanism for security personnel as a critical component of its training plan.”
He further stressed that there is a new Electoral Legal Framework that will guide the 2023 election as a result of the enactment of the Electoral Act 2022.
“These commitments require innovative security strategies and deployments for the protection of voters, election personnel, materials, equipment, the electoral processes as well as the general public and infrastructure.
“These innovative systems and processes minimize human errors and delays in results collation and improve the accuracy, transparency, and credibility of the results collation process thereby ensuring the credibility of the process.
“They were tested during the Ekiti and Osun Governorship elections, held on June 18, 2022, and July 16, 2022, respectively,”he stressed
In December last year, INEC, had raised concerns over the rate of attacks on its offices and facilities.
The Commission released data detailing 50 attacks across 15 states, namely: Imo (11), Osun (7), Enugu (5), Akwa Ibom (5), Ebonyi (4), Cross River (4), and Abia (4), Anambra (2), Taraba (2), Kaduna (1), Borno (1), Bayelsa (1), Ondo (1), Lagos (1), and Ogun (1).
While appearing before the House of Representatives ad-hoc committee investigating attacks on the facilities of the commission,INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, said the conduct of the 2023 elections might be affected if attacks on its offices continued.
He consequently, called on security agencies to continue to provide safety around the facilities.