UK government raises worries about the 2023 elections

The Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) has emphasized that safety during election period is a primary priority for British government as lawmakers gear up for contests across the nation.
 
This was said by Chris Pycroft, director of growth for FCDO, during an experts meeting on conducting Nigeria’s general elections in a volatile security environment that was held in Abuja in partnership with the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD). He contends that parties involved must work hard to actively advance peace in addition to ensuring the safety of voters and the voting system.
 
Security is the UK’s top concern in its collaboration with Nigeria and it will become more significant over the next 6 months, he said. We participate in a variety of programs, one of which is enhancing the implementation of peace and security.
“Nigeria is confronting more difficulties than ever to conduct a secure and peaceful election. However, at the same time, there is a growing yearning for democracy and change, particularly among Nigeria’s fast growing youth population and the nation’s women. These elections are significant not just for Nigeria or for Africa as a whole, but also for the entire world.
 
He stressed that Nigeria can serve as a powerful example of how democracy can reflect both the aspirations of a country and the rest of the globe, noting that democracy is now under danger throughout the world.
 
Because of the gravity and variety of security concerns that the populace encounters throughout the nation, Pycroft continued, “Security personnel, INEC, and others have enormous problems in meeting this need.
“As vital as election security is, as participants in just this election, we will work to effectively foster peace while both ensuring the protection of voters and the democratic process. Police presence and accessibility to voting places need to be our main concerns. Although these problems are important, they are insufficient.
“The diversity of Nigeria’s religious, ethnic, and cultural communities is putting a great deal of pressure on unity and peaceful coexistence. In all six of Nigeria’s geopolitical areas, there is an increasing possibility of serious intercommunal violence escalations.
 
“We have to consider which part the partners present today may play in efforts to avoid and lessen violence. What backup plans can we implement? How can we collaborate with one another to reduce tensions before they escalate into a fight? These are the issues that must be dealt with right now.
In his comments, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), noted that the country is approaching a crucial period before the general elections of 2023 that all hands need to be on board to make sure the success of the polls.
 
He exhorted all candidates and political parties to concentrate on area of concern campaigns, saying that this was the best approach to guarantee fair elections in which the outcome was determined only by the voters’ votes.
 
He said, “Although the election is quickly coming, there is still time to resolve the security concerns before the election. Therefore, this conference is important.
“Most correctly, I assume that emerging from communal experience of attendees at this conference, suggestions will be formed to further our knowledge of the concerns in the upcoming election, the different dimensions of the obstacles, and, most relevantly, possible solutions to reply to them to make sure that elections peacefully hold nationwide as required by law,” the author writes.
 
Idayat Hassan, the executive director of CDD, stated that the widespread insecurity in the nation is a matter for concern and needs to be addressed, particularly since it isn’t the typical electoral violence and could increase it before to, during, and after the election.