Defence Minister Warns Against Last Minute Election Security

(Defence Minister, Christopher Musa. Photo by Premuim Times)

Gen. Christopher Musa (retd.), Minister of Defense, has cautioned security services not to rely on last-minute deployments to ensure election security.

He believes that long-term election security necessitates months of intelligence-led preparation and coordination, and that last-minute security deployments will not suffice.

Musa made this statement on Tuesday while delivering the keynote presentation at a security symposium hosted by Blueprint newspaper.

According to the minister, election security should be viewed as a continuous process that requires early planning and assessment of developing dangers rather than a one-time event.

"The lesson is clear: last-minute deployments do not result in effective election security.

It is accomplished through months of planning, intelligence-led operations, inter-agency cooperation, effective communication, ongoing evaluation of emerging risks, and, most importantly, citizens' trust in the institutions designed to serve them.

"Security should never be considered an occurrence. "It is a process that begins long before campaigns begin and continues long after the final vote is counted," he explained.

He stated that the changing nature of security risks necessitated election preparations that go beyond the physical safety of polling places.

He believes that dangers to elections may arise from internet, misinformation, economic hardship, and the manipulation of ethnic and religious differences.

He warned that the greatest threat to the integrity of an election might no longer be a person carrying a weapon at a polling unit, but an anonymous actor operating online to manipulate information and undermine public confidence.

The minister also proposed a six-pillar framework for strengthening election security.

He said, “The first pillar: Strategic Intelligence should form the foundation of election security planning.

“Modern election security must be intelligence-led rather than incident-driven, with threat assessments, early warning systems and real-time information sharing among security, intelligence and electoral institutions.

"On the second pillar: As elections become increasingly technology-enabled, protecting digital infrastructure is no longer optional, and electoral systems, communication networks and information platforms must be safeguarded against cyber intrusion, digital sabotage and malicious interference," he stated.

Musa included Civil-Military Coordination as the third pillar, emphasizing the importance of coordination among security forces without institutional rivalry.

"The constitutional roles of all security agencies must continue to be respected, while strengthening coordination, interoperability and joint planning; experience has shown that seamless collaboration, not institutional competition, delivers the best outcomes during national emergencies and major public events," he stated.

He emphasized the importance of the fourth pillar, Unified Strategic Communication, in combatting misinformation.

"In today's information environment, silence often creates space for misinformation, and timely, accurate, coordinated public communication is essential to sustaining public confidence before, during and after elections," he stated.

Musa stated that the fight against misinformation could not be won just by the government, defining it as a shared national responsibility.

"Government alone cannot defeat misinformation; the media, technology companies, civil society organizations, educational institutions and citizens all share responsibility for promoting fact-based public discourse and rejecting narratives designed to incite violence or undermine confidence in democratic institutions," he stated.

Speaking, former Governor of Zamfara State, AbdulAziz Yari, warned politicians against using insecurity as a tool to win the hearts of citizens.

Yari said the fight against insecurity was a collective national responsibility that went beyond government and security agencies.

“Let us encourage all political parties to understand that insecurity is not something to be traded with for the purpose of winning the hearts of citizens. The citizens are aware that we are in trouble. From Obasanjo, Yar’adua and Jonathan to Buhari and today. We need to be fair and just,” he said.

Drawing from his experience as governor between 2011 and 2019, during which he witnessed the security challenges surrounding the 2015 and 2019 general elections, Yari said insecurity had remained a lingering national problem across successive administrations.