Authors : Stephen Nnaemeka Azom, Grace Oluchi Nwosu and Jude Odigbo
Abstract: The study examined the nexus between security agencies and challenges of election security in Nigeria. Anchored on the Marxist theory of the state, documentary method and qualitative content analysis, the study ascertained that deployment and control of security personnel, especially the police during elections is done by the Inspector-General of Police, mostly in favour of pre-determined interests. The study further observed that security personnel have paradoxically become a central element of election insecurity, on account of their deployment and partisan roles in election administration, the scenario which primarily derives from low autonomization of the Nigerian State. Drawing from Ghana’s experience in election administration, the study posits that all security personnel on election duty are to come under the control and command of the head of electoral commission rather than the Inspector-General of Police or even the President who, at that point, is an interested party. Among others, the study recommends the amendment of the Electoral Act and other legal documents to ensure that the head of electoral commission in Nigeria assumes the control and command of security personnel on the day of election.
Stephen Nnaemeka Azom, Grace Oluchi Nwosu and Jude Odigbo, 2021. Security Agencies and Challenges of Election Security in Nigeria: Lessons from Ghana. Pakistan Journal of Social Sciences, 18: 106-115.