As the governorship and state assembly elections hold across the country today, world’s attention will be focused on the nation’s security agencies. Coming off from the presidential and National Assembly elections with a score sheet of largely dismal and overtly biased performance in states like Rivers, Enugu, Akwa Ibom and Edo, among others, especially in the South-East and South-South, the security agencies have another opportunity to either confirm the allegation of partiality leveled against them or make up for their shortcomings in the last set of elections.
With the political gladiators set to do battle and the high stakes attached to the polls, residents of some states across the country are apprehensive, fearing that a repeat of the performance of security agents on March 28 could lead to ugly experiences. While the conduct of security agencies in some states during the elections has continued to receive commendation from Nigerians, the shameful conduct of many other security agents in several states before, during and after the election has driven fears into an already terrified electorate in some states described by political analysts as flashpoints.
And the residents have good reasons to be scared. In Edo State, for instance, 24 hours to the presidential and National Assembly elections, residents of the state were put on red alert by Governor Adams Oshiomhole, who raised the alarm over a curious donation of 14 Hilux vehicles to the 4th Brigade of the Nigerian Army by the Minister of Works, Mike Onolemenmen. But the governor confronted the Commander 4th Brigade, Brig-Gen. Olajide Laleye, about the ‘gift’ on the eve of an election, and the Commander was said to have told the governor that the vehicles were donated by Reynolds Construction Company.
Fearing that the vehicles were part of a sinister plan to rig the election, Oshiomhole said: “The Commander told me that he approached RCC for support. I told him it was wrong. The Brigade Commander cannot approach the Israelis to provide security when the Edo State Government is here. He has not made such a request to me.
“I reminded him that the Israelis cannot be having greater interest in the peace and security of Edo people than the Edo State Government. I denounce the idea. This is irregular. The donation should have been made transparently to the police and not the Army because the conduct of this election is primarily for the police.
“That they gave the vehicles to the Army raises more questions than the answer provided. Our investigations revealed that the vehicles will be used by plain clothes soldiers to intimidate the electorate. I have warned him not to do the sort of thing that Brigadier Momoh did in Ekiti State. Nigerian Army has no reason to portray itself as enemy of democracy. The Army must not be seen as part of the problem of Nigeria.”
The fears raised by the governor and the people were confirmed on election day, as soldiers in plain clothes allegedly clamped down on leaders of the All Progressive Congress in the state.
The soldiers were said to have invaded the hotel of the state APC Youth Leader, Osakpamwan Eriyo, along Ekenwan road. The soldiers were said to have arrived the hotel and insisted on searching a particular room because they received intelligence that arms were in the room.
Part of the scheme, according to sources in the state, was to use military men in plain clothes to harass and intimidate members and leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Complaints of harassment by soldiers were rampant in Edo North senatorial district where Governor Oshiomhole hails from. Soldiers, reportedly acting on Brigadier-General Odidi orders, rounded up residents at Igbirra camp in Auchi and prevented them from going to their polling units. A source at the palace of the Otaru of Auchi, HRH Aliru Momoh, said it was a woman who managed to escape that reported to the Otaru, whose intervention stopped the soldiers’ blockade at the Igbirra camp.
The Majority Leader of Edo State House of Assembly, Hon. Philip Shaibu, who voted at Azama Primary School, told newsmen that Odidi moved from one polling unit to another, intimidating and harassing voters. The Chairman of Estako Central Local Government Area of Edo State, Emmanuel Momoh and six other APC leaders were arrested by soldiers, allegedly led by Brigadier-General Odidi at Estako East.
Hon. Pally Iriase complained about the activities of one Lt. Colonel Abiodun Uwadia (rtd), a Special Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan who stormed Owan East with soldiers to prevent voters from voting.
Governor Oshiomhole has since petitioned the Commander of the 4 Brigade Headquarters of the Nigerian Army in Benin City, Brig. Gen. Olajide Laleye, over what he described as illegal deployment of soldiers to Edo North.
According to the petition personally signed by the governor, “Reports reaching me indicated that Lt Col.Uwadia (rtd) had illegally and unconstitutionally deployed not less than three trucks of soldiers to Owan Federal constituency which was used to harass and intimidate members of the APC in the Federal constituency. As I write, the said retired Lt Col. was also issuing threats and directing the soldiers to shoot at sight any APC member that resists his directives during and after the elections.
“Failure to stem this patently illegal action can result in consequences that are likely to go beyond the shores of Nigeria. The world is watching.”
It will be recalled that the governor, who had earlier raised the alarm over alleged ploy to use the Army to intimidate APC voters in the state, had threatened to drag the army to the ICC if they allowed themselves to be used by the PDP.
With the various political groups battling for its soul, peace and sanctity of life took flight from Rivers State long before the elections. Nigerians would not forget in a hurry the activities of the police during the tenure of a former Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Joseph Mbu. The role of the police in the crisis that almost brought the state to its knees is well documented.
It was with that in mind that Nigerians looked forward to the election, fearing the worst.
Members of the APC in the state alleged that the security operatives were highly compromised.
During the elections, reports from parts of the state indicated that security agencies were allegedly used by the PDP for unwholesome activities, ranging from carting away INEC’s election materials to thumb-printing of ballot papers inside a police station in Ogoni area of the state.
The APC, led by Governor Rotimi Amaechi, boycotted the elections over an alleged deliberate non-release of election materials to most voting centres and violence orchestrated by the PDP.
The APC accused the police of intimidating its members and leaders. It alleged that one of its agents, Emmanuel Deeyah, was arrested at the office of INEC and taken away by security operatives 24 hours to election day.
An APC chieftain and Caretaker Committee Chairman of Ikwerre Local Government Area, Hon. Nwobueze Amadi, narrowly escaped death after gunmen, suspected to be assassins, invaded his private residence in Aluu community.
In Eleme LGA, a youth and supporter of the APC) was shot dead by a military officer allegedly attached to a former House of Representatives member.
In Gokana LGA, especially at Kpor Police Station, Senator Magnus Abe and the council chairman, Kadilo Kabari, were allegedly physically manhandled by policemen when they stumbled on a team of police officers and officials of INEC thumb-printing ballot papers inside the police station. It was suspected that they were working for the PDP.
In Mile Two area of Port Harcourt, there was a report of how some security agents thumb-printed ballot papers behind a school block in the area.
The Divisional Police officer (DPO) in the area reportedly came and impounded the INEC materials and invited the officers with her to the station.
The story was not different at Andoni LGA, where the APC chairman, Chief Davis Ikwuanyi, was allegedly assaulted by security operatives attached to some PDP bigwigs in the area.
There were no elections in some wards in Buguma, Asari-Toru Local Government area of the state, especially wards 9, 10 and 14, as political thugs allegedly carted away materials for the elections, shooting sporadically to scare away prospective voters who scampered for safety. Security operatives allegedly looked on while the reign of terror lasted.
But in an effort to put the ugly past behind, Governor Amaechi, last Friday, addressed the people of the state, saying the eyes of the world were on them.
He said: “It is with great pleasure therefore that I address you today as we set our eyes on the governorship election scheduled for Saturday, April 11, 2015, to elect the administration to complete the job we started.
“Elections in Rivers State should be about equity and our peaceful co-existence as a people. It should be about encouraging those who aspire to office to work in the interest of the people. I am optimistic that these elections will be historic for us now that the whole world is watching and waiting to see the outcome.
“As a nation, we have already set a good example for the whole of Africa in showing that we can decide our affairs devoid of rancour and violence. I am therefore confident that as a state, we can follow this trend as we head to the polls on Saturday for the governorship and House of Assembly elections.
“As a government, we have worked with you to make history in our state. We believe firmly in the resilient power of the people to determine what is best for them. Over the past eight years, we have worked hard to make this possible. On April 11, we have a choice to continue this progress or endanger it. We call on everyone to turn out on Saturday, April 11, to be counted as history makers.
“Despite the marginalisation of millions of our people at the Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly elections, we cannot lose faith in our country or in democracy. The frontline contenders for Presidency in the March 28 elections have taught us this much. Our President, Goodluck Jonathan, who conceded defeat and congratulated the President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, and the President-elect who commended the statesmanship of President Jonathan. Indeed, as good leaders, they have left us a great example and their conduct should define ours in the coming days.
In Akwa Ibom State, indigenes and other stakeholders condemned the role of security agencies during the Presidential and National Assembly elections in the state.
Speaking in a telephone interview with The Nation, Akwa Ibom State Chairman of APC, Dr. Amadu Attai, said the security agencies were partial during the elections.
Attai explained that the conduct displayed by the security agencies during the elections showed that they were deployed by the Federal Government to protect only chieftains of the PDP and serving government officials in the state.
On the role expected of security agencies in today’s elections, Attai said: “I don’t know whether there will be any changes. We have complained and nobody has listened to us.
“I learnt that the Inspector-General of Police gave an order that no political office holder should go to the polls with policemen, but I was surprised to see all the chieftains of the PDP go to the polls with policemen to harass and intimidate the electorate.”
Also speaking on the development, a Chieftain of APC in the state, David Ekanem, also expressed dissatisfaction with the conduct of the security agencies.
Ekanem said it was so glaring that the security agencies were working for a particular political party, adding that it is unfair.
He said: “I was not satisfied with the conduct of the security agencies during the presidential and National Assembly elections. It was glaring that they were partial. Everybody saw it that they are working for a particular political party against the other one. It is unfair. On Saturday (today), I will expect the security agencies in Nigeria and Akwa Ibom State in particular to be unbiased.
“The more we begin to recognise the fact that election should be a game, it will be better for Nigeria. It must not be a do or die affair as we are currently witnessing. If you are declaring that it is a must for you to rule, that means you are going into public office to steal people’s money in order to enrich yourself.
“Let them (security agencies) know that this is election between brothers. Both governorship candidates of APC and PDP in Akwa Ibom State are brothers. So, we should let the security agencies know this. Whoever wins should support the other. We don’t want bloodshed in Akwa Ibom State.”
Umana Okon Umana, the Governorship candidate of APC in Akwa Ibom State, who spoke during a protest march of APC to the state headquarters of INEC, accused the security agencies of bias in the discharge of their duties.
According to Umana, security agencies escorted PDP government officials to polling units to hijack ballot boxes during the elections.
“In Ibesikpo, a serving commissioner went round with thugs. Unfortunately, the security personnel who should have protected the people of this state just looked the other away. He went round and took away all ballot boxes. When he was challenged, he personally shot and killed two APC agents.
“The Speaker was also supervising the forceful taking away of ballot boxes. Outside Ibesikpo, in Ibiono, people were shot. In Eket, we also have a video recording of how the candidate led thugs, escorted by security personnel.
“When people were arguing that they would not accept a situation where a piece of paper would be used for the result sheet, he arrived with thugs and shot into the air. When people said how can you do this? He shot one of our supporters who is still critically injured and he is in the hospital.
“The people of Akwa Ibom State feel they have been trampled upon. They have been oppressed in a manner that has never happened before. They are crying out to God that those who have participated in this conspiracy are putting up a curse on their heads.”
Meanwhile, security experts applauded the security arrangements in the March 28 Presidential and National Assembly elections, saying that it lived up to expectation. They, however, requested that security be beefed up, especially in states identified as flashpoints of violence.
Former Commissioner of Police, Abubarkar Tsav, described the security arrangement as being fairly okay. “There is need to beef up security in today’s election because it is going to be different from what we saw on March 28. This is because people were tired of the government at the centre and were determined to vote it out. This time, the election is a local one and it would be more competitive.
“INEC should make sure that its personnel get to the polling booths with all the necessary documents. They should also make sure the Card Reader is used. They should also make provisions for spare ones in case the one in use fails.
In the opinion of Wilson Esangbedo, a security expert, “Performance is based on result and if you look at the March 28 presidential and National Assembly elections, you will agree that the security agencies performed creditably well.
“There was no violence recorded here in Lagos. There was no case of ballot box snatching and no single death was recorded. It was really a huge success. I believe that the restriction of movement also made it impossible for people with sinister motives to carry out their plans.
“I don’t think there is so much reason for us to fear in today’s election. But adequate attention should be given to Lagos and Rivers states. There is a need to make the candidates of the leading political parties to sign peace agreement. Security should be beefed up because there is so much desperation now than we had during the presidential election. The parties are too determined to either win or retain their strongholds. INEC should also improve on the efficiency of the Card Reader.
Another security expert, Hon. Dipo Okeyomi, urged the authorities to beef up security at all the polling units across the country.
“The government should beef up security, but armed security men should not be allowed to get close to polling booths because it scares voters away. It has a way of making the voters to be unnecessarily jittery.
“This was observed in the Presidential and National Assembly elections. A lot of armed security men were seen around the polling booths. This should be avoided to give the people the freedom of exercising their civic responsibility without any fear.”
The opinions of the security experts were not too different from those of other Nigerians.
Adedayo Adeniyi, a motivational speaker, said: “To a reasonable extent, security operatives performed creditably well during the presidential and National Assembly elections, except in isolated cases in parts of the south where they were reported to have connived with certain politicians to encourage electoral malpractices.
“But by and large, their conduct during the last election was a great improvement compared to the Osun and Ekiti gubernatorial elections where they were used mainly to harass and intimidate.
“Today, I expect a peaceful election and a police that will stay true to their responsibility by securing lives of Nigerians and joining hands with other agencies to ensure that the conduct of the election is peaceful. The military, on the other hand, should steer clear of our streets during the election; their presence creates more fear in the minds of voters and not an assurance of adequate security.
Similarly, Femi Olutade gave kudos to the security agencies for their performance during the last elections.
He said: “The security agencies did well in the Presidential and National Assembly elections. However, I am of the opinion that their levels of alertness were not tested, as the citizens on their own decided not to engage in violence during the elections. The instances of the few killings we had in the last election were not aptly responded to by the security agents involved.
“If the security agents were at alert, how come Boko Haram attacked a polling unit in Gombe and killed an aspirant and eight others? How come the insurgents attacked a polling booth in Borno and two corps members lost their lives? The military is tasked with maintaining security at entry points to every polling unit in every state but they could not check that. I think the security agencies’ success in the last election leveraged on the intention of the masses to maintain peace because the few hitches we had could not be curbed by them.
Childcare worker, Motilola Olola, said: “When I went out around 2 pm on election day, I saw lots of security personnel scattered in strategic positions around town. They were entering each street with sirens blaring, serving a note of warning for anyone that might want to cause trouble. Worthy of note also is that even three days after the election, they were still patrolling some areas in town, especially INEC offices.
“This helped to contribute to a peaceful atmosphere. Since today’s election is more personal as it affects the people directly, they should intensify their efforts most importantly at polling units to ensure people behave properly. They should also not collect bribe because that almost led to cancellations in some voting areas where politicians had a field day doing what they wanted to do because the security officers had been bribed. The security agencies did this at the expense of those they were supposed to protect like the ad hoc staff, especially the corps members in the required manner.”
Benjamin Idoko praised the conduct of security agents and indeed, Nigerians during the elections.
“The security agencies really tried in the March 28 elections. Generally, Nigerians conducted themselves well and that reduced the work of the security agencies. Today’s election is a very serious business and it is worrisome that the use of security agents to intimidate the electorate is becoming a trend. So, I expect all the security agencies that will be involved in the election not to be biased, and they should act peacefully in order not to cause any protest.”
Also, in the opinion of Akinyemi Akintan, “the performance of the security agencies in the Presidential and National Assembly elections is greatly commended due to the fact that it was a combined effort that brought about the success recorded. For example, the police officers and the civil defense are the only security agencies allowed to be at the polling booth during election, while the soldiers were stationed at strategic positions.”
