The Minister of Interior, and former Chief of Army Staff, General Abdulrahman Dambazau, hinted that the activities of the members of the self-proclaimed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and terrorists have posed a serious threat to the forthcoming 2023 elections.
According to him, the 2023 elections would possibly be impeded by the upsurge of insecurity in the country, he further said that some percentage of the nation’s population would continue to be displaced, he noted that areas prone to the terrorist attacks are soft and vulnerable targets which would birth fear in the minds of the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC officials.
On Tuesday, he gave a speech tagged, ‘2023 Politics: National Security and Nigeria’s Stability’, ’, at the Blueprint Newspapers Annual Public Lecture held in Abuja.
‘Would insecurity affect the 2023 elections? Surely it would, because some of the community would still be displaced and the terrorists would likely continue attacks on soft targets, INEC officials and ad-hoc staff would be highly apprehensive despite the assurance by the government to protect them. Access to polling units in border communities may pose some difficulties. This is a more reason adequate security must be provided.’ – Dambazau said.
‘As we also prepare for the 2023 elections, we should also think of the possibility of an attack on the election processes by violent groups. The security threats against the 2023 elections are not limited to the activities of terror groups in the North but also the proscribed IPOB in the South East.’
‘The group had earlier threatened that there would be no election in the region in 2023 and insisted that all they want is to secede from Nigeria. They must not be allowed to carry out such a threat.’
He made clear the immediate demand for redress, pointing to the security sector. He mentioned that the different security agencies lack cooperation
In his word Dambazau said, ‘There’s a need for reforms and the reason they are necessary is that there appears to be no synergy among the security operatives in terms of cooperation, coordination and collaboration while carrying out their activities.’
‘Rather, they operate in silos, they hoard information and are reluctant to share intelligence as if they are in competition. Also, there is poor security governance, making accountability and transparency almost impossible and there is duplication of efforts leading to wastage of resources.’
