Buratai Vows To Deal With Electoral Offenders

By Daudu Huleji Emmanuel/ABUJA/

The Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen.TY Buratai have said that electoral offenders wouldnt be tolerated as the Nigerian Army are extremely ready to play her own role in ensuring a peaceful election on saturday.

Buratia said this on Wednesday at the Army headquarter at Abuja during a meeting section with the Army principal staff officers.

“The Nigeria Army is focused at making sure that electoral offenders do not go unpunished in line with the constitution of Nigeria in the forth coming saturday polls.

In the same vein, the proactive intervention of Nigeria Army in the recently concluded Presidential and National Assembly Elections contributed greatly to its successful conduct and credibility. I am glad to note that both international and local observers and indeed the Nigeria print and electronic media applauded the professional role played by the Nigerian Army in ensuring that a secure and conducive environment was created for eligible voters to exercise their civic rights.

Unfortunately, some level of violence was still recorded leading to disruption of polls, burning of ballot boxes in some areas as well as loss of lives, including the death of an officer and 3 soldiers. The Nigerian Army to a larger extent ensured that the large scale electoral malpractices and acts of thuggery aimed at disenfranchising voters as witnessed in previous elections were curbed despite the campaign of calumny orchestrated by some politicians against the army”,he added.

Stating further the Chief of Army Staff applauded Commanders of the sundry Operations going on on every part of the country.

” Overall, I am delighted to note that the first phase of Operation SAFE CONDUCT was a huge success. Despite the bomb explosion in some parts of Maiduguri and attack in Geidam, troops of Operation LAFIYA DOLE were able to decisively defeat the attacks and secure the theatre for successful conduct of elections.

He further reviewed that politicians have made plans to disrupt polls with the use of thuggery, herdsmen and other militia gangs.

“Recent security threat assessment and analysis of the coming elections showed that politicians have made plans to use all means available to truncate the peaceful conduct of the elections. There are indications of their intent to take advantage of and to use the farmers/herders crisis, armed political thugs and ethnic militias to perpetrate acts of violence including bombings. Some of them also intend to infiltrate domestic staff of political opponents, employ mercenaries to carry out acts of assassinations, use the social media for smear campaigns, hate speeches and spread fake news in a bid to disrupt the peaceful conduct of the elections. We must not allow them to succeed”,

Let me reiterate that the Nigeria Army will enforce all guidelines in support of the Nigeria Police Force to ensure the peaceful conduct of the elections in line with its constitutional roles,” he said.