Ahead of governorship election in Edo and Ondo States, the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) has warned that any attempt to undermine, interfere or disrupt the peaceful conduct of the polls would be viewed as attack on democracy.

The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, gave the warning while addressing journalists at the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee On Election Security (ICESS) meeting held at the INEC headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday.

Nuhu Ribadu who was represented by the Director of Internal Security in the Office of the NSA, Hassan Abdullahi assured that all agencies are prepared to ensure safety and security in line with President Bola Tinubu’s directive to hold credible elections.
He also urged the voters in the two States to remains vigilant and promptly report any suspicious activities or threat to the authorities to help prevent attempts to undermine the peaceful conduct of the election.

Speaking earlier, the chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, emphasized the critical role the security personnel play in ensuring peaceful, transparent, and credible elections, urging the security agencies to heighten their vigilance to dealing with potential threat to the peaceful conduct of the elections.

The INEC Chairman affirmed notable increase in registered voters, with Edo State now boasting 2,629,025 voters, a 4.9% increase from the 2023 General Election while Ondo State has 2,053,061 registered voters, a 3.0% increase with seventeen political parties, fielding 34 governorship candidates and their running mates in each state.