Kano State Commissioner of Police Useini Gumel has narrated a few challenges they face during elections. He says politicians sign peace accords and make commitments to work with the police to ensure peaceful, free, fair, and credible elections but only go behind and romance with thugs who they will use to sabotage elections.

Gumel, while narrating his ordeal on Thursday in Abuja at the two-day conference on post-election security management organized by CLEEN Foundation, said it is very difficult to understand politicians. You meet them to discuss election security, where we read the riot acts to them and inform them about the provisions of the electoral Acts.

“They would all sign a peace accord and make commitments to work with the police to ensure peaceful, free, fair and credible elections but only to go behind and romance with thugs who they will use to sabotage elections.

“So, these are challenges we identified, and in tackling them, we started by identifying trouble makers, potential thugs that are likely to be used to cause disruption during the conduct of elections and educate them on why they should have faith in the police rather than in the politicians who only need them to win elections after which they become liabilities.

The Executive Director of CLEEN Foundation, Gad Peter, in his remarks, said that the dialogue became necessary because, before the 2023 election, a lot of people were scared due to the sharp divisions that greeted the Muslim-Muslim ticket and also the question of whether the Southeast is part of the country and whether or not the Southwest should produce the president.

He said that Nigeria needs to have an electoral system that is accepted by everyone and a security system that is impartial and accountable to all of us, especially when it comes to the election issue.

In his words, “It is crucial for the continuing development and progress of our nation to work together to identify, address, and perhaps forestall potential threats to our collective security in the future and for the corporate existence of the country.

He said it is essential to come together to reflect on the security challenges encountered during the electoral period and chart how to strengthen our security management mechanism.

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