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Tag: State of Emergency

  • Insecurity: Only 15 killed so far, more have died in APC states; Anambra rejects FG’s move to declare state of emergency

    Insecurity: Only 15 killed so far, more have died in APC states; Anambra rejects FG’s move to declare state of emergency

    The Anambra State Government and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, have faulted the planned move by the Federal Government to impose a state of emergency in the south-eastern state.

    TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that as part of measures to tackle the worsening insecurity in Anambra especially as the state holds a governorship election on November 6, the Federal Government had hinted at the possibility of invoking the emergency rule to tighten security.

    The Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, announced this on Wednesday after the Federal Executive Council meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    But the Anambra Government, through its Commissioner for Information, Don Adinuba has condemned the move, alleging that insecurity in the state is politically motivated.

    “Since the renewed violence in Anambra State which we believe is politically motivated, not more than 15 persons have been killed. How many persons have died in Borno, Niger, Kaduna, Yobe, Zamfara, even Imo, which is APC-controlled; Ebonyi, which is APC-controlled?” he asked during an interview on a monitored Channels Television programme on Wednesday shortly after the minister’s announcement.

    The commissioner said the state has witnessed about 15 killings in the past few weeks, unlike some north-western and north-eastern states that are worst hit by banditry and terrorism.

    Making reference to Borno, Niger, Kaduna, Yobe, and Zamfara which are controlled by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the commissioner slammed the Minister of Justice for mulling a state of emergency in Anambra.

    “Has anybody threatened emergency rule in any of these states? For the past seven years, Anambra has remained the safest, [and] most stable in Nigeria.

    “We remain the only state in the whole country that, for the past seven years, has not experienced one single bank robbery; what is going on is politically motivated and the declaration by the honourable Attorney-General of the Federation is a confirmation,” the commissioner insisted.

    “Nigerians are outraged by the threat by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN.”

    Move to declare state of emergency in Anambra illegal, unconstitutional – Falana

    Meanwhile, Femi Falani (SAN), a human rights lawyer, has also described the move as illegal and unconstitutional.

    According to him, Muhammadu Buhari’s administration “has just realised that the deployment of troops without the declaration of emergency rule in many states of the Federation is illegal and unconstitutional”.

    He recalled that since 2015, President Buhari has imposed emergency rules in Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, Zamfara, Kaduna and the Katsina States by deploying members of the armed forces to assist the police in the restoration of law and order.

    According to the senior lawyer, the President has adopted such extraordinary measures without seeking the approval of both chambers of the National Assembly.

    “In other words, since the emergency rule imposed on the North East region by President Goodluck Jonathan expired by effluxion of time, President Buhari has not renewed or extended it,” he said via a statement on Wednesday.

    “The National Assembly has not challenged the illegal emergency rule imposed without any declaration as stipulated by section 305 of the Constitution.

    “Hence, the threat issued by the Attorney-General of the Federation is an attempt to return to constitutionalism with respect to the imposition of emergency rule in Anambra State and other states in the North-West, North-East and South-East regions where the Federal Government is waging a full-scale war against terrorists and the so-called gunmen.”

    Falana insisted that nowhere in the Constitution has the President been vested with the power to remove the elected governor of a state and suspend democratic structures.

    He explained that the governor of a state can only be removed by impeachment or resignation and not by imposition of emergency rule, adding that the tenure of legislators is four years in line with the provisions of the Constitution.

    “Even though former President Olusegun Obasanjo removed two Governors via the imposition of emergency rule, the PDP-led Federal Government later jettisoned the illegal practice,” the lawyer maintained.

    “Hence ex- Presidents Umaru Yar’adua and Goodluck Jonathan never used emergency rule to remove elected governors or suspend legislative houses and local government councils. Indeed, the Federal Government has since realised that it is unjust and immoral to remove a governor of a state since the president exclusively controls the armed forces, the police and other security agencies.

    “To that extent, the Federal Government should drop the dangerous plan to remove the Governor of Anambra State and impose a Sole Administrator on the eve of the forthcoming gubernatorial election in the State.”

  • Biafra is madness, we don’t want it – Gov Umahi

    Biafra is madness, we don’t want it – Gov Umahi

    Chairman of the South-East Governors Forum David Umahi has said the agitation for Biafra State in the South East has been hijacked by criminal elements.

    Umahi, who is also the Governor of Ebonyi State, said this when he appeared on a monitored Channels Television programme on Wednesday.

    The governor was speaking about the security situation in the South-East, the activities of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and other issues, a day after governors of the region announced that a security outfit “Ebube Agu” will be established in the five states that make up the region before the end of the year.

    “At the initial time, it was an issue of ‘look, we are being marginalised. A lot of people keyed into that,” Governor Umahi said of the initial agitations in the region.

    “Then, along the line, it developed into violence. And then later, the same agitation has been hijacked by criminals, bandits and kidnappers.”

    The Governor explained that the grievances of people in the region over the years had led to support for IPOB, which had said it was fighting against the marginalisation of the region.“A lot of people keyed in,” he said.

    “If anybody had grievances with the centre (Federal Government), the person became a supporter of IPOB. If you sort anything at the federal level and you fail to get it, you become a supporter of IPOB.

    Those in the diaspora that went for greener pastures and they failed to get such become very bitter with the Nigerian society. And so, followers kept growing.”

    According to the governor, the situation worsened when the conflicts with herdsmen came up.

    “They were a couple of killings in the South-East and the people were a bit helpless and felt the governors were not protecting them,” he said, adding that though the governors did a lot to ensure that there was peace between the herders and people, residents were not satisfied.

    “You see, some uninformed elements felt that the only way to solve the problem between us and herdsmen was to ask them to leave the South-East.”

    The preferred option for these elements, he explained, was not nationalistic because people from the South-East also live in the north.

    “Then came the IPOB with ESN (Eastern Security Network), which is the militant aspect of IPOB, and they started to issue orders of threats,” the governor said.

    So, along the line, the whole exercise has been hijacked. In the South-East, we no longer have kidnappers; everyone that commits one criminal act or the other claims to be IPOB.”

    Governor Umahi accused some politicians, who he did not name, of capitalising on the situation.

    These politicians, he said, “began to import killers from outside the South-East to advance their political interests”.

    The governor, however, stressed that the people were beginning to understand the situation and support for IPOB is declining due to the actions of the group and the level of violence in the region.

    He added that once the issues of leadership and development that led to cries of marginalisation were addressed to complement efforts being made by the governors to tackle the situation, security will improve in the region.

    According to the governor, it is the failure of the Federal Government to treat the region equally that has led to agitations and calls for secessionist state, Biafra.

    “This idea of Biafra, Biafra is madness,” he said, adding that most elites in the south east do not want Biafra.

    “We don’t want Biafra. We only want to be treated equally like other regions in Nigeria,” Governor Umahi stressed.

    Speaking of the sit-at-home order, which he says is mostly issued by people in diaspora, the governor lamented that the south-east people are complying only out of fear and not because they want to be obedient.

    “If we had a policeman to everybody, nobody is going to obey any sit at home,” he said.

    He, therefore, promised that governors from the region will continue doing what they can to safeguard the people because “we cannot have Biafra by the way they are going about it”.

  • Declare State of Emergency on security, Matawalle urges FG

    Declare State of Emergency on security, Matawalle urges FG

    Gov. Bello Matawalle of Zamfara, has urged the Federal Government to declare a State of Emergency on security.

    The governor gave the advice when he received the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in-charge of Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara, Ali Janga, on a courtesy call on Wednesday in Gusau.

    Matawalle said declaring a state of emergency was the “only available avenue of ending the increasing security challenges at hand.”

    In a statement issued by Malam Zailani Bappa, Special Adviser, Public Enlightenment, Media and Communications, the governor expressed concern over the incessant attacks on innocent communities in Zamfara and other states.

    He told the visiting AIG that the current wave of insecurity was alarming and getting out of hand, as such the need to declare a state of emergency on security in the country.

    “No one feels safe anymore and the only way to return the country on the path of sanity is to act out of the box,” he stressed.

    The governor commended the federal government and security operatives in the country for their commitment to the fight against banditry.

    He however said “extra effort is required to contain the growing security problems that are mounting by the day”.

    “The problem in Zamfara state is quite unique from those in other places and therefore require very careful and constructive solutions to control it,” he added.

    Matawalle told the AIG that his administration had never faltered in its support to security operatives and would continue to do so, to enable them succeed.

    Janga, who was accompanied by the state Commissioner of Police, Ayuba Elkhana, commended Matawalle for his commitment to finding lasting solutions to the security problem in the state.

    Janga said that without the support rendered by the state government, the entire work of the police in the state would have collapsed. (

  • Insecurity: Zamfara governor wants state of emergency imposed on Northern Nigeria

    Insecurity: Zamfara governor wants state of emergency imposed on Northern Nigeria

    Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, has called for a state of emergency in the northern part of the country over the security challenges in the region.

    He made the call on Wednesday at a meeting with the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 10, Ali Janga, at the Government House in Gusau, the state capital.

    The governor who is seriously concerned about the series of attacks in many states in the region believes a declaration of a state of emergency will address the problem of insecurity in the North.

    Nigeria’s northern region comprises three geopolitical zones – North East, North West, and North-Central – and 19 states, as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    Over the years, parts of the region have been grappling with a series of criminal activities such as kidnapping, bombings, and attacks on communities as a result of insurgency and banditry.

    Before now, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed in the region while millions were forced to flee their ancestral homes.

    Boko Haram and Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) are largely responsible for the incidents in the North East, while bandits have continued to engage in kidnapping for ransom in the North West and parts of the North Central.

    Schools and security formations have been targets for the criminals, and the latest is the attack on the Nigeria Nigerian Defence Academy in Kaduna State.

    For some persons of concern, including Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, there is a strong connection between the terrorists and the bandits.

    Following the meeting with the senior police officer on Wednesday, Governor Matawalle briefed the people of the state on the present security situation in Zamfara.

    He assured them of his administration’s commitment to ensure safety in all parts of the state.

  • Declare state of emergency in Kaduna before bandits kidnap all residents under El-Rufai’s watch – MBF begs Buhari

    Declare state of emergency in Kaduna before bandits kidnap all residents under El-Rufai’s watch – MBF begs Buhari

    The Middle Belt Forum (MBF) on Sunday took a swipe at Governor Nasir El-Rufai for allegedly allowing the insecurity in the state to fester while he does nothing to savage the situation.

    It, therefore, called on President Muhammadu Buhari to, as a matter of urgency, declare a state of emergency in Kaduna State.

    MBF accused the governor of making utterances that encourage bandits to intensify abductions in the state.

    “More than any time, Governor el-Rufai has continued to provoke bandits through unguarded utterances that have further enraged them to unleash more terror attacks on various communities,” the forum said in a statement by its National President, Dr. Pogu Bitrus.

    The group stated that despite El-Rufai’s refusal to negotiate with kidnappers: “he has also not done anything to secure these weak communities against further attacks by bandits.”

    “Arising from the glaring failures by Governor el-Rufai to protect lives and property, we are calling on President Buhari to declare a state of emergency on Kaduna State as the governor has shown gross incapacity to maintain peace,” the MBF added.

    Besides, it called on security forces to collaborate with vigilante groups in the attacked communities to track down the bandits that have “declared war on the people.”

    The forum said the most disturbing was the recent abduction of over 120 students of Bethel Baptist High School in Damishi and the attitude of el-Rufai towards ending the security challenges facing the state.

    The the statement added: ”Most disturbing is the recent abduction of students of Bethel Baptist High School in Damishi which is located on the outskirts of Kaduna. These minors are still being held captive in the forest with no food, shelter or medication.

    “This new wave of attacking schools by the bandits appears to be in the agenda of Boko Haram and is aimed at frustrating the education of future generations upon whose shoulders lie the future greatness of our nation.

    “The most worrisome is the attitude of Governor El-Rufai towards tackling the security challenges confronting the state. Communities across various local government areas in the state have come under unending severe attacks resulting in gruesome massacres, raping of women, destruction of property, incessant kidnappings made worse by huge payments of ransom to secure release of abducted persons and displacement of thousands of people out of their homelands.

    “More worrisome is the fact that attacks by these killer herdsmen and kidnappers on defenceless communities have led to massive displacement of people from their ancestral lands, thereby creating a catastrophic humanitarian crisis situation and rendering farmers unable to access their farmlands for agricultural activities.

    “Current attacks on schools have also led to the withdrawal of pupils and students from schools or outright closure of such schools. The negative consequences of these on education and food security can only be imagined.

    “On the other hand, kidnappers have taken over all the routes linking Kaduna State to other parts of the country where they have continued to unleash terror on road users.”

  • Declare State of Emergency on Insecurity now, Archbishop Martins tells FG

    Declare State of Emergency on Insecurity now, Archbishop Martins tells FG

    Worried by the incessant cases of kidnapping in almost all conceivable places, murder of innocent people, including Policemen, burning down of police stations, correctional facilities, and INEC offices nationwide, the Catholic Archbishop of Lagos, Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Martins has urged the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on insecurity in the country. According to him, such a move has become very necessary in order to spare the country from the looming anarchy that is staring us in the face.

    In a recent release made available to newsmen and signed by the Director of Social Communications, Rev. Fr. Anthony Godonu, the prelate who would clock 62 years on Tuesday June 1, 2021, bemoaned the failure of the government at all levels to decisively address the root causes of insecurity across the country and bring their perpetrators and sponsors to book.

    Efforts to rid the country of kidnappers and bandits, the Archbishop said, should include constant dialogue between representatives of the security agencies and major stakeholders such as religious leaders, traditional rulers, leaders of ethnic groups, the civil society, and political parties.

    He called on the National Assembly to follow through on the process for the amendment of the Constitution of Nigeria so as to pave the way for such needs as the creation of

    state police and revalidation of the federal character of the republic. These would certainly help in restoring peace and security all over the country.

    According to him, “It is obvious that insecurity, apart from corruption, has become the single most serious problem that is facing our country today. Many innocent persons are being kidnapped for ransom, many are being attacked in their homes and displaced with their properties destroyed and normal life disrupted daily. Even Policemen and their stations are being deliberately attacked with impunity. What this means is that the country is gradually drifting into a state of anarchy. This, no doubt, portends a grave danger for our collective wellbeing.

    “This is no time to play the blame game or to play politics through sectoral efforts. There must be a collective effort through a robust consultation with all stakeholders. We all must come together to fight this hydra-headed monster of insecurity that is making life difficult for our people. So, we call upon the federal government to declare a state of emergency on insecurity and roll out practical action plans with time frames within which the situation will be brought under control,” he added.

    Archbishop Martins, while noting that the insecurity being experienced all over was part of an age-long systemic problem with governance at the national level, also called for a review of the present structure, which, he says, places too much power on the Centre, while the states continue to operate without adequate authority to chart the path for their development. He therefore supported the recent call by some elder statesmen for the revalidation of the federal structure of the country as anticipated by the founding fathers of the country and articulated in the 1963 Nigerian Constitution of the country, even if the configuration of the constituent parts of the federation is different from what it was in the 1963.

    While commiserating with the federal government and families of the deceased military officers who lost their lives in the recent air mishap that also claimed the life of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Ibrahim Attahiru, Archbishop Martins said the only way to honour the dead is to strive harder to overcome insecurity and make the country a better place for all citizens to live in.

    The prelate appealed to the various ethnic groups agitating for self-determination to embrace dialogue and shun violence so as not to exacerbate the insecurity in the land, causing more hardship for the people.

    He reminded the political leaders that Nigerians are going through a lot of hardship occasioned by the economic downturn. He called for various forms of interventions to help cushion the hardship. On the rising cost of foodstuff in the market, he asked government to seek new ways of bringing an end to the herders/farmers clashes which are adversely affecting the planting and harvesting of agricultural products, especially in the southern parts of the country.

    The Archbishop also called on well-meaning Nigerians to be their brother’s keepers by extending hands of charity to the less privileged and the downtrodden in the country.

  • Asking Buhari to declare state of emergency not solution to security challenges – Gov Masari

    Asking Buhari to declare state of emergency not solution to security challenges – Gov Masari

    Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari has said that the declaration of a state of emergency on security cannot solve the myriads of challenges facing the country.

    Briefing journalists on Thursday after meeting with the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Professor Ibrahim Gambari at the State House in Abuja, Masari said the military is over stretched.

    “It cannot because how can state of emergency solve the problem? You have a situation where the military are in all the states of the federation, then you ask yourself, how many do we have?” he said.

    “Are we not overstretching them? So the reality is the responsibility of securing this country is ours, all of us. We have a role to play, and we must play it for the sake of the country and for the sake of our children and grandchildren, not for the sake of the persons that in office.

    “I think we better be serious about this issue of security. If you say set up state of emergency, what do you do? We are having the same people, the same security agencies, the same capacities, and the same resources. So what are we talking about?”

    While noting that the nation’s security situation is a national concern and goes beyond partisan politics, the governor said that the responsibility of securing the country does not rest solely on a sect of individuals or security agency.

    According to him, the emphasis on security would ultimately be of great benefit to every Nigerian and sub-Saharan Africa as a whole.

    Governor Masari also reacted to the security situation in his state, adding that his administration is working hard to contain the ugly trend of banditry, kidnapping among several others.

    He also said the state government is working closely with security agencies to nip criminal activities in the bud for the overall good of residents of Katsina State.

    He added, “Actually the situation is still of high concern, insecurity is real and we’re doing everything to make sure that we control the situation so that it doesn’t reach the level it reached before and we’re hopeful that working together with the security agencies and the responsible people and also the repentant bandits will be able to have our state will back to normalcy.”

    TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that Masari’s reaction comes 48 hours after the House of Representatives asked President Buhari to declare a state of emergency on the security sector.

    The House had on April 27 held a record three-hour executive (closed-door) session, from where the lawmakers unanimously adopted a series of resolutions.

    After the meeting, Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, read out the resolutions, part of which the lower chamber condemned the attacks on security personnel and formations around the country and sympathised with families of victims.

  • Insecurity: Declare state of emergency, Senate tells Buhari

    Insecurity: Declare state of emergency, Senate tells Buhari

    The Senate on Wednesday asked President Muhammadu Buhari to declare a state of emergency on insecurity in the country.

    The resolution follows a motion by Senator Sani Musa on the abduction of students from the Government Science College Kagara Niger state.

    Senator Bima Enagi from Niger State in his contribution, accused the President of incompetence as the security situation is worsening in the country.

    He argued that the constitution should be amended to give governors more powers as they are the security officers in their states because the Federal government is incompetent in handling security.

    TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that gunmen at about 2:00 am on Wednesday attacked the school and shot sporadically, with one student feared killed and several others abducted.

    Some teachers and their family members residing within the college staff quarters were also said to have been abducted by the gunmen.

     

  • Trump declares state of emergency in Washington ahead of Biden’s inauguration

    Trump declares state of emergency in Washington ahead of Biden’s inauguration

    United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump has declared a state of emergency in Washington D.C..

    The declaration came on the heels of a revelation by the police of three plots to attack the Capitol Building ahead of Joe Biden’s inauguration, including the “largest armed protest in American history”.

    It also came as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) alerted its agents to possible uprisings at capitols in 50 states ahead of Inauguration Day, particularly if Trump is removed from office before Biden enters the White House.

    Trump’s declaration allows the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate with local authorities as Democrats had been furiously demanding.

    On Monday night, the new chiefs of Capitol Police told House Democrats they were looking into three separate plans, including one described as “the largest armed protest ever to take place on American soil”.

    The protesters plan to involve armed rioters encircling the Capitol and blocking Democrats from entering – killing them if necessary – so that Republicans can take command of government.

    They also plan another protest in honor of Ashli Babbitt, the USAF veteran who was shot by a police officer as she tried to clamber into the Speaker’s Lobby during the Trump mob’s siege.

    “It was pretty overwhelming,” one Democrat told Huffington Post of the police briefing.

    The FBI’s internal memo warned of a group which was calling for the ‘storming’ of state, local and Federal Government buildings, as well as court houses if Trump is removed from office.

    The bulletin came to light just as Speaker Nancy Pelosi introduced an article of impeachment accusing Trump of incitement to insurrection, five days after the mob of the president’s supporters stormed the Capitol, leaving five people dead in a futile bid to overturn the general election.

    More than 6,000 members of the National Guard were deployed to Washington, DC, over the weekend, with dozens of them standing guard over the Capitol during Monday’s proceedings.

    Capitol Police told Congress that it was preparing for up to tens of thousands of Trump supporters arriving in the days ahead, including possible violence to take control of the White House and the Supreme Court.

    Working alongside their colleagues in the National Guard, the police are said to have told Democrats that they had agreed on rules of engagement in the eventuality of an armed demonstration.

    They do not plan to shoot anyone unless fired at first, but they added that there were exceptions to the rule.

    The police urged caution on lawmakers about leaking any specifics to the press because Big Tech had so successfully ‘cut off main communications’ that many could now only learn of plans through traditional media.

    One member remarked that the Silicon Valley gagging order on Trump’s supporters “might ultimately save lives”.

    But as the Capitol Police expressed confidence it was making sufficient plans to combat any violent uprisings, some lawmakers questioned whether this was the case given the lax security last week.

    One Democrat told the police chiefs that there was clear evidence that some in the police department could be ‘in league with the insurrectionists who love to carry their guns.’

    “You can’t just let them bypass security and walk right up to Biden and Harris at inauguration,” this lawmaker told HuffPost.

    A further area of Democrat speculation surrounded whether the Trump administration was preventing federal law enforcement from lending its expertise to the police.

    The member told the HuffPost: “I don’t think anyone has confidence that the folks at the Pentagon, that may or may not even be needed for some of this, or the Department of Homeland Security, where we don’t even know who’s in charge, are going to be cooperative.”

    The National Park Service said it would close the Washington Monument and other area facilities beginning today and lasting through January 24.

    The Pentagon is also reportedly considering sending as many as 13,000 guardsmen to secure the area on Inauguration Day. Prior to last week’s breach, officials had planned to deploy roughly 7,000 guardsmen.

    The hardened-up security plans came after the Department of Defence said it was aware of “further possible threats posed by would-be terrorists in the days up to and including Inauguration Day”, Congressman Jason Crow (D – Colorado) said in a statement Sunday after speaking with Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy about security preparations.

    The Department of Homeland Security is working with the Defense Department, local DC authorities and inauguration officials to sharpen the law enforcement response in the coming days, including by erecting non-scalable fencing and security checkpoints around Capitol Hill.

    “Now that it happened people will take it much more seriously,” a senior DHS official told CNN in reference to last week’s violence. “Now, the planners, they are all going to take it much more seriously.”

    Federal and local authorities have faced fierce criticism for their perceived failure to crack down on Wednesday’s insurrection despite evidence that they knew it was coming.

    Hundreds of people might face federal charges in the wake of last week’s Capitol breach, DC’s acting US attorney said in an interview with NPR over the weekend, saying a massive, 24-hour-a-day hunt was on to identify suspects and bring charges against them.

    In the meantime, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said she is ‘extremely concerned’ about security on Inauguration Day in a letter to acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf over the weekend. She wrote that the event ‘will require a very different approach to previous inaugurations given the chaos, injury and death experienced at the US Capitol during the insurrection’.

    Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris are set to be sworn in on the west front of the U.S. Capitol on January 20.

  • US election: Oregon governor declares state of emergency

    US election: Oregon governor declares state of emergency

    2020 has brought a barrage of emergencies across the country that have required the National Guard—the coronavirus pandemic, hurricanes, wildfires and a wave of street protests.

    Now those troops are preparing in case they are needed once again, this time for potential violent unrest in the wake of the election.

    Communities are bracing for protest regardless of the election’s outcome. If demonstrations turn violent and overwhelm local police, governors will almost certainly call out their states’ National Guard.

    Under federal law, it is the Guard, not active-duty military, that can impose order on domestic soil.

    It has already happened dozens of times this year in cities across the country. States are already on alert for violence.

    On Monday, Governor Charlie Baker of Massachusetts ordered 1,000 members of the National Guard to be on standby in case of chaos following Tuesday’s election.

    And in Oregon, Governor Kate Brown declared a state of emergency for the Portland area, citing concern for potential violence surrounding the election.

    Under the plans, the Oregon State Police and the Multnomah County sheriff will take over management of public safety in the city, and Brown said she has directed the National Guard to have members trained in crowd control to be on standby.

    “We know that there are some people who might use peaceful election night protests to promote violence and property destruction, ” Brown said Monday. “That behaviour is not acceptable.”

    Hundreds of National Guard troops already have been called up in non-law enforcement roles, to assist states where the ranks of poll workers have been depleted by the coronavirus pandemic.

    Those troops are doing cyber security and routine election tasks like opening mail-in ballots.

    As of last week, 10 states had started the National Guard to help with election tasks, and 14 more are expected to activate troops this week.

    New Jersey and Wisconsin have both called up hundreds of citizen soldiers and airmen to work the elections.

    In both states, the troops helping out are wearing civilian clothes so that voters won’t be alarmed by seeing camouflage uniforms at the polls. “It creates a sense of normalcy, ” said Maj. Joe Trovato, a spokesman for the Wisconsin National Guard. “We’re not trying to alarm anyone; we are just trying to support the election.”

    But in a year that is anything but normal, with the electorate sharply polarised, the president warning supporters of a stolen election, and gun sales through the roof, states are bracing for violence that may overwhelm local law enforcement and bring uniformed military troops into the streets.

    Legal professionals say the election may complicate the response because the president has broad discretion to sidestep legal restrictions by declaring an insurrection, which would allow him not only to take control of state National Guard troops, but also to deploy the Army or Marines.

    If the president decides turbulence rises to the level of insurrection, there is little Congress or the courts can do to stop him, legal experts say.

    “The law is so broadly written that the president gets to decide what’s an insurrection, and there is not much local authorities or anyone else can do to stop it, ” said Rachel VanLandingham, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel who now teaches national security law at Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles.