Benin: Interior Ministry determined to ensure peaceful elections
As the 2026 general elections approach, the Ministry of the Interior and Public Security (MISP) is stepping up initiatives to ensure peaceful and credible polls.
SUMMARY
As part of this effort, an awareness seminar was held in Cotonou for judicial police officers of the Littoral Department, under the theme: “Awareness on judicial practice during the electoral period: reconciling justice and security.”
The aim of this meeting is to strengthen the capacity of law enforcement so they can balance the need for lawful enforcement of offenses with the preservation of social stability, two essential pillars for a successful electoral process.
Opening the proceedings, Mr. Adamou Aba Bagnan, Technical Advisor for Political and Electoral Affairs at MISP, emphasized the complementarity between justice and security.
“Through this awareness seminar, we want to consolidate coordinated action between lawful enforcement of offenses and the need to maintain a climate of peace. These two imperatives do not impose themselves, nor are they opposed; they reinforce one another to ensure the stability and legitimacy of the vote,” he stressed.
The seminar revolves around two main axes, namely mastering the legal framework for electoral offenses; and managing electoral incidents with respect for social cohesion and citizens’ rights.
Responsibility and professionalism
Mr. Aba Bagnan called on participants to show exemplary rigor in carrying out their duties, stressing that it is imperative for every judicial police officer and agent to know precisely the legal framework governing elections.
This first session, held in the Littoral, opens a series of workshops that will extend to the other eleven departments of the country. MISP thus reaffirms its determination to equip all law enforcement with the necessary tools to secure the electoral process, guarantee transparency and preserve peace.
“Your work in the field must be guided by indisputable legal expertise, a guarantor of legality and objectivity. The way an offense is recorded, how evidence is collected and how suspects are treated has a direct impact on perceptions of fairness and on the level of tension,” he stressed.
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