Former President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday faulted the deployment of military personnel for election duties in Nigeria, arguing that it overstretched the military, whose primary responsibility lies elsewhere.
He noted that in many other countries, particularly developed ones, officers of the air force and army are only used to transport election materials to high-risk areas, rather than providing security at polling units, as is done in Nigeria.
Jonathan made the remarks at the Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, during the launch of books on internal and election security written by former Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase.
He stressed that elections should be primarily managed by the police and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), not the military.
“Having been the president of this country before, when you talk about internal security, it’s an area that touches my heart. And especially when you talk about election security, again, it’s an area that touches my heart. One gets worried when it comes to Nigerian elections.
“In fact, here we overstretch the army. In most other countries, the military doesn’t get involved in the day-to-day management of elections. Some countries use them to manage strategic systems, such as transporting election materials to dangerous areas.
“But manning polling booths and staying around polling stations, military personnel are never used for such duties,” he stated.
Jonathan cited examples from Botswana and Senegal, where elections are conducted with minimal security interference, allowing voters to cast their ballots without intimidation.
The former president added “We talk about technology, yet despite the technology, we still have problems. But in Senegal, they use the simplest form of voting.”
Jonathan, however, stated that politicians would adjust once society starts demanding that the right things be done.
“We Nigerians celebrate the wrong things. But I believe that one day, the country will reach a point where people reject bad behaviour. And when that happens, these issues will no longer exist.
“The day we all collectively say we no longer accept the wrong thing; the political class will behave properly. People must reject us if we act wrongly,” he said.
Expressed hope that Nigeria would evolve into a nation where bad political behaviour is condemned.
Jonathan added: “Maybe one day, we will have two big buildings in Abuja where we will display pictures of people—whether dead or alive—who have messed up this country, so their grandchildren will know their forefathers were part of Nigeria’s problems.”