By Dayo Johnson & Dapo Akinrefon  Akure

A coalition of civil society organizations, Nigeria Civil Society, on Friday, cautioned security agencies against intimidating voters during Saturday’s governorship election in Ondo State.

Speaking on the preliminary report of the group, the group’s co- convener, Mr Franklin Oloniju, urged security agents, deployed for the election, to be civil and moderate in their approach.

Oloniju urged them to avoid scaring the electorate from exercising their civic rights on Saturday.

He said: “While a high level of security deployment is essential to deter breach of electoral peace, the presence of security forces must not be seen as intimidating to voters.

“Excessive display of force can contribute to an atmosphere of fear and suppress voters’ turnout.

“In past elections, we observed that security deployment has been uneven, with more officers concentrated in urban areas, leaving rural communities under-secured.

“The deployment must be evenly spread across both urban and rural areas and strategically to prevent possible disruptions.”

The group also tasked the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to ensure early arrival of election materials and their safety during the exercise.

Oloniju said: “INEC should ensure that polling units open on time, as any delay can disenfranchise voters and undermine the credibility of the process.

“The Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, is expected to function optimally based on the report from Mock test.

“INEC must ensure that the trained personnel are readily available to handle technical issues swiftly, ensuring that voters are not disenfranchised due to faulty equipment.

“Elections in Ondo State have previously been fraught with tension, but we remain hopeful that this governorship election will mark a departure from past fears and irregularities.

“We call on all stakeholders to abide by the provisions of the Electoral Act and INEC’s Guidelines to deliver a fair, inclusive and credible election.

“We also call on INEC and Security Agencies to ensure that observers have full access to the Collation Centres.

“The Situation Room and other independent observers are committed to ensuring that the will of Ondo voters is respected. We will continue to observe and report on the process to ensure accountability at every stage.”