From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja

Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the National Security Adviser, Babagana Mungono, have expressed deep concerns over the threat that negative mobilisation, incitement and violence during the electioneering campaign by the political parties posed on the 2023 general elections.

They warned that the threats area  prelude to violence on election day and beyond that should tackle before they snowball into major inferno.

Chairman of the commission, Mahmood Yakubu, first pressed the panic button in his remarks at the quarterly meeting of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) in Abuja on Friday. He specifically commended the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), for facilitating the arrest and prosecution of the culprits of vote buying during the Ekiti and Osun governorship elections.

In his own remarks, NSA, who doubles as the Chairman ICCES, observed that the violent dimensions of electioneering campaigns, characterised by attacks on campaign rallies, campaign offices and uncomplimentary remarks, uncouth utterances among politicians pose serious threat to the 2023 elections.

According to the INEC Chairman; “Beyond vote buying, there must also be decisive action against negative mobilisation, incitement and violence during the electioneering campaign. It is exactly a month since the commencement of campaign by political parties on September 28, 2022, yet the incidents of physical attacks on supporters and destruction of campaign materials across the country is worrisome.

“At our consultative meeting two days ago, leaders of political parties in Nigeria also complained about the denial of access to public facilities and exorbitant charges in some states for the use of such facilities for the dissemination of their campaign materials, messages and rallies. These attacks and denials are a violation of the Electoral Act 2022 and ominous signs of what will follow as the campaigns enter critical stages.

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“They may also be a prelude to violence on Election Day and beyond. We should tackle the smoke before it snowballs into a major inferno. The effective enforcement of our electoral law is the best way to deal with the menace. We should work together to ensure the arrest and prosecution of violators of the provisions of especially Sections 92 – 93 of the Electoral Act 2022,” he warned.

However, bringing the message of hope, Yakubu said: “As the 2023 General Election approaches, we will continue to appraise the security situation in the country and its possible impact on the conduct of elections. We are right now working to harmonise our Election Risk Management (ERM) and Election Violence Mitigation and Advocacy Tool (EVMAT) for a more effective risk assessment and mitigation measures ahead of the general election.

“We will continue to share information with the security agencies and most importantly work together to ensure that elections hold peacefully nationwide as scheduled,” he said.

“On behalf of ICCES and INEC, I extend our profound appreciation to all the security agencies for the professional conduct of personnel before, during and after the CVR and the governorship elections. There are important lessons from the Ekiti and Osun governorship elections that will help our planning for the 2023 general elections. “Synergy among the security agencies facilitated the timely deployment of election materials, the coordinated escort of personnel to various locations before the elections and the effective security at the polling units and collation centres.

“As a result, polling units opened on time, collation of results started promptly and declarations made in good time. Going forward, Nigerians expect an even better performance during the 2023 general election. Therefore, a lot of work lies ahead, but I am confident that we will do it effectively and professionally.

“One of the worrisome practices perpetrated during elections by desperate individuals was vote buying and selling at polling units on election day. This Committee has severally discussed this matter.

“In our determination to curb the menace, the membership of ICCES was expanded to include the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) and EFCC. The two agencies have been deploying their operatives during elections and this effort is paying off.”