24th March 2015 Comptroller of Nigeria Immigration service Mrs. Funke Adeuyi, has told members of the service to remain neutral and impartial during the elections. She said this in Cross River State at a one day sensitization workshop aimed at educating some personnel of the institution that have been shortlisted to participate in the elections.
Mrs Adeuyi said elections succeed through fairness and transparency, and revealed that men of the command have participated in trainings organized by the office of the National Security Adviser, because of the 2015 general elections.
She is quoted as saying, “We are nonpartisan, we belong to no political group and we are not expected to canvass votes for any political party or politician. We are deploying our men to go out there and perform their duties with a high sense of national interest. They are to protect every Nigerian that is available at the poling units on election days. I can assure you that our officers are well behaved and trained, and they are expected to carry out their constitutional duties as expected,”
Also at the seminar, an official Mr. Aminu Abubakar, presented a paper titled ‘Standard of Operational Guidelines for Security Officers on Election Day’. According to him, officers and men of the NIS need to create an enabling environment for the electorate to vote without any intimidation, and for foreign observers to freely observe the process without fear of harassment.
He said “As men of the NIS, you are expected to verify all electoral materials before escorting same to different poling units. Don’t intimidate any voter because you are wearing uniform. Be neutral in your conduct,”