February 25 presidential election: Police deploy 27,000 officers in Lagos
Over 27,000 police officers have been deployed to ensure peaceful election during Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly elections in Lagos state.
Speaking, Thursday, at a meeting with officers of the Lagos State Police Command, the Deputy Inspector General, Force Operations, DIG Johnson Babatunde Kokumo, on behalf of Inspector General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, charged personnel on election duty to adhere to policing responsibility.
According to him, “We are to ensure that the election is peaceful, free of crisis and fair,” highlighting that Police officers must be apolitical to achieve a peaceful election.
The DIG tasked the senior officers in attendance to ensure that they abide by the Electoral Act in order to guarantee free, fair and credible results in all parts of the state.
“We are supposed to be apolitical. We should not unleash terror on the members of the public. Don’t use arms on harmless members of the public.
“We are to be civil, respect the rights of citizens. We are to collaborate with sister security agencies, but we are to take lead according to the Electoral Act,” he said.
He further disclosed that the IGP had ordered for a special deployment in the air, land and water, with collaboration with sister security agencies operating in those areas and urged the command to set up a special electoral investigation team at the State CID where all cases and arrest relating to the elections would be treated immediately.
The Lagos State Police Commissioner, CP Idowu Owohunwa assured the DIG that the police in Lagos will not disappoint the residents and the nation at large.
