The General Officer Commanding (GOC), 2 Division, Nigerian Army (NA), Major General Auwalu Mahmuda has instructed troops providing security for Osun State Off Cycle Gubernatorial Election to be professional and adhere strictly to the Code of Conduct for Election duty.

Major General Mahmuda made the call on Friday 7 August 2026 while addressing troops that will be supporting the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) for the election, at Engineer Construction Command (ECC), Ede, Osun State.

He underscored the critical nature of the task the Nigerian Army has placed on their shoulders, as part of their constitutional role in providing aid to civil authority.

He added that the exercise tagged “Operation SAFE CONDUCT” will be in support of the NPF, which is the lead agency for the conduct of elections in Nigeria.

He, however, maintained that they are to provide outer cordon security, and only respond to situations when called upon to do so, stressing that they must stay away from polling units, and respond appropriately to any security threat.

Nigerian Army 2 Division troops

The GOC stressed that the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu expects nothing short of professional conduct by the troops, in support of the NPF.

He charged them to shun sentiments, or any form of bias, by ensuring that their actions and inactions are guided by Nigeria’s national interest, stressing the need for them to be disciplined and maintain a robust disposition, without harassing anybody throughout the period.

He charged the troops to act and behave as well-trained soldiers of the Nigerian Army, reassuring that all what they require for the seamless conduct of Operation SAFE CONDUCT have been provided, urging them to justify the confidence reposed in them.

The Major General used the opportunity to appeal “to the good people of Osun State to have confidence in the security arrangements put in place for the smooth conduct of the election. He reassured that nobody will be harassed, as the security arrangements put in place are essentially for the maintenance of law and order for the people to freely exercise their constitutional rights.”