ICPC to deploy armed personnel for 2027 elections

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) says it will deploy armed personnel to monitor the 2027 general elections as part of efforts to curb electoral fraud.

The commission’s Director of Public Education, Demola Bakare, disclosed this on Thursday during a virtual National Stakeholders Workshop on the 2027 general election.

Bakare said the ICPC had trained armed personnel who would be deployed for election monitoring and operate under the commission’s directives.

The workshop, organised by Praxis in collaboration with the Human Resources Development Centre, University of Lagos, focused on strategies for identifying, monitoring and reporting corruption to promote electoral integrity.

Bakare said effective election monitoring should begin months before the polls, with monitors familiarising themselves with relevant electoral and criminal laws.

He identified bribery, vote buying, abuse of public resources, intimidation, procurement fraud and manipulation of electoral records as practices that could undermine the credibility of elections.

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“Elections usually become corrupt because it is a political competition. Electoral fraud thrives when everyone engages in it,” he said.

He argued that punishing electoral offenders would deter others and help strengthen the integrity of the electoral process.

According to him, election monitors must remain non-partisan, understand the limits of their legal access and prioritise their safety while on duty.

He also stressed the need to preserve evidence gathered during monitoring to ensure it remains credible and admissible in court.

Bakare urged monitors to submit reports containing actionable facts and channel them to the appropriate agencies for investigation and prosecution.

He said Nigeria could still conduct credible elections, noting that the continued reference to the 1993 presidential election as a benchmark showed that the country had previously demonstrated the capacity to achieve high electoral standards.

He called on citizens to mobilise for credible elections in 2027.