As preparations intensify for the November 8, 2025, off-cycle governorship election in Anambra State and the February 21, 2026, FCT Area Council elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has called on security agencies to uphold their constitutional duty of safeguarding the electoral process.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, made the appeal on Tuesday in Abuja at the first 2025 meeting of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES).

Yakubu identified vote-buying as a major threat to credible elections and urged security agencies to tackle the menace effectively. He also noted that lessons from the recent Ondo governorship election would serve as a blueprint for future polls.

The National Security Adviser (NSA) and ICCES Co-Chair, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, represented by the Director of Internal Security, Hassan Yahaya Abdullahi, highlighted enhanced cooperation, technological deployment—including drones—and improved surveillance as factors that ensured swift responses to security threats.

The NSA assured that lessons from the Edo and Ondo polls would be used to refine security strategies for upcoming bye-elections and the Anambra governorship poll.