President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, appraised the security arrangements for this year's general election and reminded the leadership of the Nigeria Police of the high expectations of them in relation to the provision of requisite security during and after the polls.
Buhari also reassured the country that the general election would be peaceful and reflect the free will of the citizens.
However, following the redistribution of voters to new polling units nationwide, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), yesterday, revealed that there were 240 polling units without registered voters across 28 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). INEC said elections will not hold in those units.
Buhari gave the assurance of peaceful and credible polls during the inauguration of critical operational assets of the Nigeria Police ahead of the elections.
The assets included Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs), 88 Pick Up Patrol vans, 10 Water Canon Trucks, 3,000 hand grenades, 1,502 AK47 rifles and stun guns, 9, 607 bullet proof vests and helmets, and 30 General Purpose Machine Guns (GPMG).
Buhari pledged to "bequeath to the nation a democratic culture in which the police will not only be apolitical and impartial during the 2023 general election," but the election process would also be "peaceful and secure, and the outcome truly reflective of the free will of the citizens."
The president inaugurated the newly acquired operational vehicles, crowd control and anti-riot gadgets, and high-capacity desktop and laptop computers to ensure proper enforcement of electoral laws, seamless electioneering process and stabilisation of the public space before, during, and after the elections.
He said during the event held at Force Headquarters, Abuja, "This vision can best be achieved through an efficient police force and I am delighted that the force leadership is advancing my vision in this regard.
"Looking back at what I inherited as a police force and where we are almost eight years into this administration, I can proudly say that I have significantly attained my re-positioning plan for the Nigeria Police Force and it is my expectation that subsequent national leadership in the country will sustain this initiative."
Buhari commended the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Usman Baba, and the entire Nigeria Police establishment for the achievement, saying, "I encourage you to sustain your zeal for service to the nation. You should, however, be reminded of my high expectations of your leadership, particularly, in relation to the provision of requisite police security that will engender not just a stable security space ahead of the general election but guarantee the credibility of the exercise."
He reminded the security agencies that the country had great expectations with regard to the conduct of a secure election.
The president stated, "In this task, I call on the Inspector General of Police and, indeed, all law enforcement agencies that will be complementing the police in the election security process to note that the eyes of the nation and the global community will be on you all.
"Having been fully briefed by the Inspector General of Police of his detailed Operation Order and Action Plan for the 2023 general elections during the Council of State meeting that was held on Friday, 10th February 2023, I have no doubt of the high level of preparedness of the Nigeria Police for the exercise.
"I trust also that in line with your service oaths and statutory obligation to our beloved country, you will not disappoint us all as you put to effects your election security governance operational plans."
Buhari added, "On my part, I renew the assurances of my firm trust in your leadership and unwavering support for the police. It is, indeed, in demonstration of this that I recently approved the release of requisite funds to the Nigeria Police Force towards the continuation of the next phase in the annual recruitment exercise of 10,000 constables in line with extant presidential approval.
"It is in cognisance of this that I have remained firmly committed to the reform agenda of our police all through. The overriding goal is to modernise, reform and restore the dwindling primacy of our police within the internal security architecture of the country, our nation's criminal justice delivery system, and the democratic process.
"To this end, I now move to commission the critical operational assets for effective use by the Nigeria Police Force."
The IGP, in his address, said the assets assembled were procured as part of the broad strategic plan of the force towards stabilising the security space before, during and after the 2023 general election and for the purpose of enhancing the capacity of the Nigeria Police to manage civil disorder in line with acceptable national legal framework and global law enforcement protocols.
Baba stated, "Assembled here for Mr. President's commissioning are critical operational assets comprising 88 Pick-Up Patrol Vans; 21 Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs); nine Prado Jeeps; one Coaster bus; 10 Water Cannon Trucks.
"Others are two Rapid Razor Security Wires Dispensing Trucks; 9,607 Bullet Proof Vests and Plates; 2,055 Ballistic Helmets; 140,571 Long and Short Range Tear Gas Cell; 1,248 Antiriot Helmets; 3,000 hand grenades; 30 General Purpose Machine Guns (GPMGs); 1,502 Stun Guns and AK47 Rifles with assorted calibres of live ammunition; 300 HP Desktop Computers; 250 HP Laptop Computers; 150Gubabi Fire Proof Safe; 100 Dragon Fire Proof Safe; and 150 Individual Filling Cabinets."
The IGP said the acquisition of the security equipment was to "demonstrate the determination of the force leadership to advance Mr. President's commitment to a reformed, modernised, fully equipped, highly-motivated and citizens focused police force that is re-oriented to the virtues of professionalism, respect for rule of law, due process, operational efficiency and best international practices in our internal security mandates."
In a related development, the IGP met with Commissioners of Police from the 36 states and FCT, where he charged them to create enabling space for peaceful elections. The meeting, held at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, was also attended by Deputy Inspectors-General of Police and members of the Force Management Team, and Assistant Inspectors-General of Police from across the country.
The conference, which was the first this year, was targeted at reviewing the internal security of the country and reassessing the police strategies towards the 2023 general election.
The IGP also charged the police chiefs to safeguard the public space for the elections in synergy with other security agencies.
While charging them to ensure that quasi-security outfits created and owned by state governments were precluded from the election duty, Baba stressed that national security interest overrode personal interest and as such, in line with the directives of Mr President, the election shall be policed in a civil manner with full compliance with the rule of law.
He warned all officers to remain apolitical and ensure free, fair and credible elections.
Minister of Police Affairs, Alhaji Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi, informed Buhari that the Ministry of Police Affairs had in recent years rolled out robust logistic support and effective policy environment to complement the efforts of the Nigeria Police.
Elections Won't Hold in 240 Polling Units, INEC Declares
INEC said there were 240 polling units without registered voters spread across 28 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). As such, the electoral body declared that elections would not be held in the 240 polling units. INEC chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, made this known yesterday in Abuja at a meeting with political parties held at the commission's headquarters.
Yakubu recalled that in 2021, with the support of political parties and other critical stakeholders, the commission successfully expanded voter access to polling units 25 years after the last delimitation exercise in 1996. He said, consequently, the number of polling units increased from 119,973 to the current figure of 176,846.
He noted that at previous meetings, the commission had briefed political parties on efforts to redistribute voters to the polling units in order to avoid the congestion that made voting cumbersome in many of them nationwide.
Yakubu stated, "This requires the redistribution of voters to new polling units in proximate locations. Where they are separated by distance, this must be done after consultation with the voters. This has been done by our state offices nationwide.
"However, there are 240 polling units without registered voters spread across 28 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). They range from one polling unit to 12 polling units in each state and the FCT, except Taraba and Imo States with 34 and 38 polling units, respectively.
"No new registrants chose the polling units and no voters indicated interest to transfer to them during the last Continuous Voter Registration (CVR), mainly for security reasons. This means that no elections will hold in these polling units."
The INEC chairman stressed that in line with its commitment to transparency, the commission was making available to Nigerians a comprehensive list of these polling units by name, code number, and their locations by state, local government and Registration Area.
He said with this development, "The number of polling units where elections will hold nationwide on 25th February 2023 and 11th March 2023 is now 176,606."
Yakubu stressed that Nigerians deserved the right to know the locations of these polling units, adding that the soft copy of the list has been uploaded to INEC website and social media platforms for public information and guidance.
He added, "Closely related to the distribution of voters is the identification of polling units. From the feedback we received from our officials and accredited observers following the recent nationwide mock accreditation using the BVAS, it is clear that some voters could not easily identify their polling units.
"This should not happen on election day. Consequently, the commission is advising voters to confirm the locations of their polling units through a dedicated portal on our website."
In addition, Yakubu noted that all voters who had been assigned to new polling units would receive text messages from the commission indicating their polling units. He said the commission had also compiled the register of such voters, stressing that INEC state offices would give it wide publicity, especially for those who may not have provided their telephone numbers during voter registration or those whose numbers may have changed.
He urged voters to locate and confirm their polling units before election day by sending a regular text or WhatsApp message to a dedicated telephone number, saying details of the simple procedure would be uploaded to the commission's social media platforms shortly.
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Yakubu revealed, "As you are already aware, we have less than two weeks to the 2023 general election. The commission is finalising the issuance of 1,642,386 identification tags for the Polling and Collation Agents nominated by the 18 political parties made up of 1,574,301 Polling Agents and 68,085 Collation Agents."
He urged the chairmen and leaders of political parties to ensure that only agents accredited by the commission and wearing the correct identification tags appeared at polling units and collation centres during elections.
Yakubu said a situation where two or more agents would claim to represent a political party, resulting in commotion at polling units or collation centres, will not be tolerated. He maintained that only Identification tags issued by the commission would be recognised on election day and violators were liable to arrest and prosecution for impersonation.
The INEC chairman noted, "Turning to the ongoing electioneering campaigns, the commission is concerned about violent attacks on supporters of political parties across the board, resulting in the loss of life in some cases.
"Let me once again appeal to chairmen and leaders of political parties to continue to call your candidates and supporters to order."
The commission called on the security, intelligence and law enforcement agencies to arrest, investigate and prosecute anyone involved in violent conduct, including incendiary statements capable of inciting a breach of the peace.
Speaking at the occasion also, the chairman of Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Yabagi Yusuf, reaffirmed the confidence of IPAC in the leadership of INEC for its consistent demonstration of diligence, uncommon zeal and patriotism in the pursuit of the agency's statutory mandate. Yusuf said the 2023 general election would be a watershed in the history of elections in Nigeria, stressing that the tide has changed, because an unknown party could pull a surprise.
He stated that it was necessary to advise INEC to keep its date with history, which must not be wasted.
The IPAC chairman stated that under no circumstances should the general election be postponed.
According to him, "INEC should create a golden niche for herself, especially the chairman, who has become the child of history. Nigerians are watching, the international community is watching and the parties are palpitating. I, therefore, call on all Nigerians of good conscience to take credible results of the election the way it is.
"At worst, parties should resort to the law court for adjudication. Today, it is an abhorrence and crudity, if not savagery, to see states governors denying campaign venues to political parties other than their own. This is crude, primitive and uncivilised."
