A’Ibom Guber: Police plan massive deployment of operatives

In a bid to forestall any form of breakdown of law and order in the forthcoming gubernatorial and state House of Assembly elections in Akwa Ibom State, the Commissioner of Police, CP Olatoye Durosinmi said the command would deploy more of its officers to troubled zones in the state.

He also revealed that some security officers arrested during the presidential and National Assembly elections are undergoing orderly room procedures while hoodlums indicted for various forms of thuggery during the polls are being investigated.

The CP disclosed this while addressing the 2023 Elections Citizens Stakeholders meeting held at the Usman Alkali Baba Conference Hall of the command’s headquarters, Ikot AkpanaAbia, in Uyo, the state capital.

The commissioner hoodlums to stay away during the rescheduled elections as the command would not tolerate acts capable of compromising the polls.

He said: “We have made adequate preparation for the elections, and we have what it takes to ensure a free and fair poll. All our troubled zones will be adequately covered. We have massive deployments to all the zones in the state.

“Some criminals were arrested during the elections, and there were security men among them; the criminals are being investigated and the security officers among them are undergoing orderly room procedures and anyone found guilty will be sanctioned.”

He charged the stakeholders directly, saying: “You are in a better position to tell us what went wrong and what went well so that we know those good things and improve on them, and if there are lapses, we can go back to the drawing board and correct them in order to have a free and fair governorship and state Houses of Assembly elections.”

Meanwhile, the stakeholders who spoke during the meeting while commending security agencies for the feat recorded during the polls, however, expressed disappointment with INEC over the conduct of the elections and called on the electoral umpire to improve on its lapses in order to achieve free and fair polls.

According to the chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, in the state, Mr Amos Etuk, it was disheartening that INEC could not send a representative to the meeting, adding that there were observable lapses during the elections.

He said: “It’s unfortunate that INEC did not send a representative to a stakeholders meeting which is convened to address lapses during the elections and to improve on the lapses. INEC must address such lapses in order to have free and fair elections.”

Though Mr Aisien Odairo, INEC’s head of Public Affairs in the state, was seen at the meeting venue, DAILY POST learnt he left before proceedings commenced.

In his remarks, the Publicity Secretary of the Inter-party Advisory Council in the state, Rev Inibehe Emmanuel, advised INEC to “provide a level playing field for political parties in the state.”