17/01/2015
There will be no official role for uniformed
soldiers at polling stations across the land when
next month’s elections get underway,according
to indications from the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) .
Only unarmed policemen will be allowed at the
120,000 polling units created for the
elections,Saturday Nation gathered yesterday.
The commission is also said to have factored into
its preparations possible run-off polls even as it
is scheduled to meet with political parties, civil
society organizations and representatives of the
people of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe in the
North-East on Tuesday on the modalities for
voting by one million Internally Displaced Persons
(IDPs).
The exclusion of soldiers from electoral
duties,sources said yesterday,is to create an
enabling environment for voting.
The decision was taken at strategic meetings
between INEC and security agencies on how to
make the elections free and fair .
Sources said that having tested the use of
unarmed policemen in Ekiti and Osun states, INEC
is confident that the 68.8million voters
registered for the elections will be adequately
protected.
“We have had a standard measure which we
adopted in Ekiti and Osun states. We want to use
unarmed policemen in all the polling units,” one
source said.
“There will be mobile police units, who will be on
standby to curtail any violence or disruption of
the voting and counting processes.
“Soldiers will just be restricted to entry and exit
points in major towns and cities. They will have
nothing to do with the conduct of the elections.
“You will recall that Nigerians, especially women,
had made representation to Justice Muhammadu
Uwais Electoral Reform Committee for armed
policemen and soldiers during elections but we
have decided to adopt international best
practices.
“The signing of the peace pact by major parties
on Wednesday has boosted our confidence that
we may have a hitch-free poll.”
The source said INEC and security agencies have
a standing committee which has been meeting on
security logistics for the election.
Contacted yesterday, the Chief Press Secretary to
INEC chairman, Mr. Kayode Robert Idowu, said:
“We are working round the clock with security
agencies to ensure free and fair polls. I cannot
give you further details.”
Investigation confirmed last night that INEC has
factored likely run-off in presidential and
governorship elections into its preparation for
the polls.
According to the 1999 Constitution, a candidate
shall be deemed elected as President or a
governor having scored the highest number of
votes cast and he or she has not less than one-
quarter of the votes cast at the election in each of
at least two thirds of all the states and FCT or
local governments in a state.
The INEC source said: “We have made provision
for either presidential or governorship poll run-
off. We cannot be caught off-guard.”
Meanwhile, INEC management will meet with
political parties, civil society organizations and
representatives of communities displaced in the
North-East and other parts of the country on how
to conduct election for about one million
Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).
The House of Representatives had approved
voting for IDPs in February.
A second source said: “INEC has designed
modalities for voting by the IDPs, we are going to
table these before stakeholders on Tuesday.
“We want to get their input too. Once everyone is
involved, the modalities will be strictly adhered
to.
“And if we need to amen our Electoral Act, we will
inform the National Assembly because no one
had envisaged the challenge of IDPs.”
