Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has banned the state vigilance service, local Civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) and other civilian security volunteers from polling units within Kaduna State.
El-Rufai, in a state broadcast on Friday, said that all civilian security volunteers should instead join in voting and return home after casting their votes.
“The government is determined to ensure that the elections are conducted as a festival of democracy. That means that there is no room for violence, intimidation, voter suppression or any unlawful activity. Nothing and nobody will be allowed to impair the ability of any citizen to freely cast their vote.
“The police will be assisted by personnel from the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Nigerian Immigration Service, the Nigerian Customs Service, the Federal Road Safety Commission and the Kaduna State Traffic Law Enforcement Agency.
“The government wishes to stress that all personnel of the police and other agencies that are deployed for official election duty will wear proper identification tags. Orderlies of officials are not on election duty, and should therefore not be seen in uniform on Election Day.
“During the elections, the Nigerian Armed Forces will be in the background, but on standby to assist in any circumstances that threaten to overwhelm the police.
“The military has been deployed in areas that have recently been menaced by bandits to secure these places and protect the rights of their residents to vote, all these in line with their rule of engagement.
“It is important to declare that there is no security-related role in the election for civilian volunteers. All volunteers, including those of the Kaduna State Vigilance Service, should be content with voting and returning home, like every citizen of Kaduna State,” he said.
