To mitigate
electoral violence in the 2019 General Elections, improve public safety and
security through enhancing accountability in election security management in
Nigeria, CLEEN Foundation mapped the electoral environment in the build up to the
elections through its Election Security Threat Assessment (ESTA) conducted
across the 36 states and FCT.

The Election Security Threat Assessment (ESTA) is a survey that maps perceived security threats that are likely to affect the 2019 General Elections, and proffer mitigating measures to prevent the identified electoral threats. The mitigating measures are targeted at various electoral stakeholders who have the constitutional mandate to take actions against the identified electoral risk factors especially the security agencies, electoral management body (INEC), CSOs, and Media. The methodology for producing the ESTA involves administering questionnaire, Key Informant Interviews, Focus Group Discussions and Desk Research.

Findings from the
ESTA across Nigeria indicated twenty-one (21) states across the federation were
on red alert for possible violence during the elections. These states included
– Abia, Adamawa Akwa-Ibom, Bauchi,
Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Delta, Ekiti, Imo, Kaduna, Kano, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos,
Ogun, Plateau, Rivers, Taraba, Yobe and Zamfara. It is sad to
note that some of the volatile states identified by CLEEN Foundation
experienced violence. The Election Security Threat Assessment of CLEEN
Foundation was coordinated and disseminated thrice in Nigeria between August
2018 and January 2019.

Subsequently, CLEEN
Foundation monitored the conduct of security personnel on election duty in
partnership with the Police Service Commission who has the constitutional
mandate to discipline erring police officers. As part of the preparatory
activities, CLEEN Foundation recruited, trained and deployed 1,600 election
observers to specifically observe the conduct of security personnel on election
duty. CLEEN domestic observers together with the Election Security Centre
monitored the conduct of security personnel during the Presidential and
National Assembly Elections and the Governorship, State Houses of Assembly and
FCT Area Council Elections conducted on Saturday February 23 and March 9, 2019.

CLEEN’s Election
Security Support Centre (ESSC) was set up to receive reports from domestic
election observers deployed across the 774 local governments in the country.
Incidents monitored from the field, were reported to the appropriate authority
mainly the Nigeria Police Force and INEC for quick interventions. The observers
were given a checklist developed by CLEEN which was used to rate the conduct of
security personnel on election duty.

The ESSC provided update on security issues, as well as the conduct of security personnel deployed on election duty. CLEEN under her ESSC released six statements covering, Pre-Election, Election Day and Post Election on the conduct of security personnel.

CLEEN ESSC comprised security, criminal justice, policing, democracy, governance, public safety and election security management experts who analyzed security issues during the elections.

CLEEN Foundation acknowledges the support of the European Union
under the EU_SDGN and the UK Department for International Development (DFID) for making this possible.

Chigozirim Okoro & Odo Nnamdi

CLEEN Foundation