By TINA TIMOTHY

The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has charged security agencies to ensure a secure environment for the conduct of bye-elections and re-run polls in some parts of the country.

Yakubu gave the charge while delivering his remarks during a meeting of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) held at the INEC headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday, January 23, 2024, adding that “the conduct of isolated elections such as bye-elections and re-run elections can be very challenging.”

“Your task as members of ICCES is to ensure security for the elections. For this reason, the Commission has already provided to the Nigeria Police Force, as the lead agency in election security, the full information of the locations where the elections will be held broken down by States, Local Government Areas, Registration Areas/Wards and Polling Units. We have similarly provided the number of registered voters and Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) collected in each Polling Unit. The same information will be shared at this meeting with other members of ICCES. The updated information will be also be uploaded to the Commission’s website and social media platforms for public information immediately after this meeting.

“As you are all aware, election is a multi-stakeholder responsibility. INEC has a role to play. So too are other stakeholders. As security agencies, it is your responsibility to secure the environment to enable us deploy personnel and materials, the protection of observers, the media as well as the polling and collation agents representing the political parties and candidates. Without a secure and peaceful environment, the conduct of credible elections is imperilled.

“From experience, the conduct of isolated elections such as bye-elections and re-run elections can be very challenging. We must pay attention to the potentials for disruptive behaviour by some candidates and their supporters. A re-run election conducted in one Polling Unit or a handful of Polling Units can be severely disrupted by acts of thuggery knowing full well that these few locations will determine the outcome of the election. Arising from the reports we received from the States, concerns have been raised about the impact of the prevailing insecurity in some States on the conduct of the elections, made worse by incendiary statements by some political actors. We will present such concerns and reports at this meeting for appropriate security response,” Yakubu said.

Citing governorship elections coming up in Edo and Ondo states in September and November respectively, INEC Chairman further said that there is no election season in the country, adding “as we prepare for the bye-elections and re-run elections, we should equally be prepared for the two major elections later in this year in Edo and Ondo states.”

“What many people do not realize is that there is no election season in Nigeria any longer. Elections are held throughout the year between one general election and another. This adds to the enormous pressure on both INEC and the security agencies. For instance, in addition to the bye-elections and re-run elections holding next week, the Commission has also released the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the two off-cycle Governorship elections in Edo State scheduled for 21st September 2024 and Ondo State holding on 16th November 2024. As required by the Electoral Act 2022, party primaries and nomination of candidates shall be done not later than 180 days before the date fixed for the elections.

“Accordingly, party primaries for Edo State will commence next week and end three weeks later (i.e. 1st- 24th February 2024). For Ondo State, primaries will be held between 6th and 27th April 2024.

“Our collective experience as election managers and security agencies shows that party primaries can sometimes be more acrimonious than general elections.

“Therefore, as we prepare for the bye-elections and re-run elections, we should equally be prepared for the two major elections later in this year in Edo and Ondo states,” he added.