Juliana Francis
The Executive Director of the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), Mr Okechukwu Nwanguma, has urged law enforcement agents not to stand aloof during electoral crimes.
Nwanguma stated: “There is no justification for law enforcement agents on election duty to stand aloof or appear to be helpless in the face of any electoral crime no matter the magnitude.”
While noting that security agencies have been trained in election security management, adding: “Although security agents on election duty are not permitted to carry arms within the polling units, they are required, when they witness incidents that tend to disrupt the electoral process or violate the Electoral Act, to intervene professionally, and if the situation is beyond their capacity to handle, they should call the armed patrol team for support.”
He also said that law enforcement officers were expected to act in accordance with the “Standard Operational Guidelines, Rules for law enforcement agents on election duty” developed for, and adopted by the Nigeria Police Force and other law enforcement agencies complimenting the NPF in election security.
