News Investigators/ The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Nasarawa State has urged electoral officers and security agencies to identify potential security threats and take proactive measures to ensure peaceful conduct of the 2027 general elections.
Mohammed Abubakar-Sadiq, Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, made the call at an Electoral Risk Management sensitisation workshop for Electoral Officers, members of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) and Civil Society Organisations on Thursday in Lafia.
Mr Abubakar-Sadiq said that election planning went beyond procurement, training and deployment of ad hoc staff and provision of logistics to include adequate security arrangements before, during and after elections.
He said the workshop was organised to assess security preparations and identify vulnerable areas requiring increased security attention ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The REC urged Electoral Officers to remain vigilant and work closely with security agencies in their respective Local Government Areas (LGAs) to identify and report emerging threats.
He listed the agencies to collaborate with to include the Nigeria Police Force, Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Nigeria Immigration Service and other relevant security formations.
Mr Abubakar-Sadiq said early identification and reporting of security risks would enable relevant agencies to respond promptly and prevent threats from disrupting electoral activities.
He urged participants to contribute actively to the workshop and work towards elections free from violence, intimidation and other forms of interference, including during the post-election period.
Earlier, Jacob Ajuh, INEC Administrative Secretary in Nasarawa, said the workshop was designed to bring key stakeholders together to identify potential security risks and develop strategies to address them before they escalated.
Mr Ajuh said election risk management was essential to protecting voters and electoral officials, sustaining public confidence and preventing security threats, political tension and operational challenges from disrupting the electoral process.
He explained that the workshop would strengthen the commission’s capacity to collect, verify and analyse information on potential risks across the state to guide planning and deployment of resources.
The administrative secretary urged participants, particularly Electoral Officers, to provide accurate, verified and location-specific information on security vulnerabilities in their respective areas.
He said effective risk identification and mitigation would help create a secure environment in which eligible voters could exercise their franchise without fear or intimidation.
Mrs Grace David-Tuwan, INEC Head of Department, Planning and Monitoring in the state, said the workshop aimed to strengthen stakeholders’ capacity to prevent, mitigate and manage threats that could undermine peaceful, free, fair and credible elections.
She said the exercise would also improve coordination among INEC, security and intelligence agencies, civil society organisations and other stakeholders, while strengthening early-warning and response mechanisms.
Similarly, Safiya Garba, Head of Department, Voter Education, Gender Publicity and Inclusion, said the workshop would help identify existing electoral flashpoints and assess new developments that could pose security threats.
Mrs Garba said the commission would collaborate with security agencies to develop appropriate measures to address identified risks and prevent disruptions during the elections.
Speaking on behalf of the participants, Ayodele Oladoje, INEC Electoral Officer for Karu LGA, described the workshop as informative and impactful.
He said the workshop had improved participants’ understanding of factors that could threaten the conduct of the 2027 general elections.
Mr Oladoje said identifying potential risks and developing appropriate mitigation strategies were necessary to achieving INEC’s objective of conducting free, fair and credible elections.
NAN