Mike Igini 4.8 Recommendations for future election security Based on the lessons learned, the following recommendations are made to improve election security: l Every election cycle should be preceded by a review of the legislative framework guiding elections namely, the constitution, electoral act and election manual of the national EMB as it pertains to election security to identify gaps which can undermine election security. In this connection, the provision of section 150 of the Electoral Act that gives power to INEC to try electoral offenders without express power and capacity to investigate should be reviewed, as well as the uncertainties inherent in the electoral law that allows political parties to nominate candidates through opaque processes, and which outcome the law prohibits INEC from questioning. These are threats to election security and should be amended. l Recurrent failures to expeditiously prosecute and convict election offenders have also undermined election security by increasing the sense of impunity on the part of potential electoral offenders. This trend must be curbed by instituting the electoral offences commission, a specialized commission that should be enabled with resources, capacities and competencies to investigate prosecute and ensure conviction of electoral offenders; such a commission should therefore have police units whose task it is to investigate and present 58 ELECTION SECURITY IN NIGERIA: MATTERS ARISING Election Security in Theory and Practice: Perspective of a Resident Electoral Commissioner evidence, along with electoral forensic as well as competent legal prosecutors. l Also there is the need to institute a quick process for investigating and resolving complaints as is the case with the just concluded United States General Elections (2012) where almost 398 out of 400 pre-election petitions and complaints had been resolved by the authorities, particularly the supreme courts in the various states. l The continuing education of voters and other political stakeholders remain a preventative imperative to secure elections by helping to reinforce positive democratic practices and curbing deviant democratic behaviours. 4.9 Conclusion Election is an important element of modern day representative democracy. It provides an institutional medium by which electorates in a country choose their representatives into different positions of governance, and also allows different interest groups within a state to stake and resolve their claims to power through peaceful means. These expectations of the utility of elections often fail when the security of an election is inadequate or fails completely. The consequence of such failures has been the failure of governance in many states within and outside Africa. In Nigeria, this has been a recurrent challenge and hence, efforts are been made to improve the security of elections so as to enhance the outcome of elections. ELECTION SECURITY IN NIGERIA: MATTERS ARISING 59