Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the closure of borders ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Buhari’s order for the closure of the borders is to prevent any external security breach in Nigeria during the elections, Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, (NIS), Isah Idris said.
A source in the NIS told The Guardian that the presidential order will take effect on…..
Idris, who spoke at the commissioning of assorted radios and communication equipment donated by IHS towers Nigeria in Abuja on Tuesday, said security alertness during the election will be a collaborative effort of other agencies.
“This is in view of the fact that this national exercise places enormous task on NIS to not only effect the presidential directive on border closure during the elections, but to equally work with other security agencies as stakeholders to guarantee the conduct of free and elections,” Isah said.
The Immigration boss said the equipment donated to the agency “will further enhance and scale communication as part of efforts towards emplacing border patrol operations and strategies to combat recurring trend of irregular migration.”
The 2023 election, according to the timetable by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), will start on Saturday, February 25 with the presidential and National Assembly elections while the governorship and State Assembly elections come up on Saturday, March 11.
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Amid attacks on its facilities across the country and other security threats, INEC has insisted that it is ready to conduct the elections with no plans to postpone the excercise.
INEC chairman Mahmood Yakubu said technological tools will be deployed to predict and mitigate election violence, verify political party spending and monitor electoral materials from procurement through storage to delivery.
Yakubu while speaking at the Chatham House, London, last Tuesday highlighted the commission’s level of preparedness towards Nigeria’s general election.
“There is no doubt that violence and threat of violence are major challenges to credible election in 2023,” he said. “In all, we feel assured by the actions we have taken and our collaboration with the security agencies. The 2023 general election will proceed as planned. There is no plan to postpone the election.”
