Iyiola Oni(Phd) The following are factors that must be considered when providing security for an electoral exercise: a. Population size involved in the electoral process b. Physical location to be protected c. Election materials and personnel to be transported d. Difficulty of terrain to be traversed 5.2 A Brief History of Election Security in Nigeria In past times, the credibility of elections in Nigeria had been very argumentative and controversial because of the inability to secure such elections both in terms of pre-election, election day and post­election processes. Such failures to secure elections have often led to political crises and governance failures with frequent interruptions of the democratic governance through military interventions. For instance, it is on record that the controversial elections of 1964 and 1965 led to the coup de tat of January, 1966; the flawed election of 1983 produced the military coup of 31st December, 1983; and the annulment of 12th June elections of 1993 by the Babangida regime brought about the emergence of a fickle interim government that was declared illegal by a FHC, and shortly afterwards, toppled by the late General Abacha palace coup. In Nigeria, elections are usually characterised by all forms of electoral malpractices and irregularities such as the manipulation of the laws and processes guiding the conduct of elections to suit particular outcomes, constraining the access of some participants and the resources at their disposal to reach voters for campaign purposes prior to election day, as well as stuffing of ballot boxes with ballot papers well ahead of actual voting. Other forms of electoral 82 The Role of Transport Unions in Election Security fraud include: seizure of or hoarding of election materials; manipulation and fabrication of electoral results; use of law enforcement agencies to intimidate, maim and disenfranchise eligible voters; killing of political opponents on election day or before, as well as manipulating the post-election judicial processes to obviate or distort just outcomes that should reflect the will of voters as expressed in the ballots. Failed elections with consequent democratic regime failures have often been preceded by one or more of the aforementioned breaches of the electoral process due to challenges of security, often posed by the activities of hoodlums called party thugs and compromised officials at different stages of the election process. 5.3 Role of Security in Election The following are some crucial roles that security plays in the electoral process: a. Safeguarding of lives and properties of citizens during the electoral process. b. Ensuring the safety of electoral officers before, during and after elections. c. Providing security for candidates during rallies, congresses, conventions, electioneering campaigns and elections. d. Ensuring and preserving a free, fair, safe and lawful atmosphere for campaigning by all parties and candidates without discrimination. 83