Governorship: Ballot box snatchers, others’ll be ruthlessly dealt with – IGP


The Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Mr Mohammed Abubakar Adamu said Tuesday that ballot box snatchers and perpetrators of other electoral violence would be dealt with ruthlessly in the forthcoming coming gubernatorial and State House of Assembly elections.

Fielding questions from State House correspondents after a Security Council meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari, the police boss said adequate measures have been put in place in violence-prone states to avert crisis before, during and after the polls.

He said the police would not tolerate repeat of the violence that characterised the presidential and National Assembly polls in some states. 

“We will again advise those that will want to disrupt the process to rethink because during the presidential election, we had some few challenges here and there, those challenges, we’ll not allow those challenges to repeat themselves. We are taking more security measures to address those pockets of challenges we noticed. 

“So, thuggery again, is not allowed, ballot box snatching is not allowed, disruption of the election process is not allowed. We, the security personnel have resolved to deal ruthlessly with anybody that attempts to disrupt the process of this election. 

“For that reason, we expect, every states, the conduct of the election should be respected. We expect that electoral materials must not be tempered with, we expect that the INEC officials would do their work without fear or favour and without being allowed to compromise. The same thing, the security personnel are to perform their duties without allowing themselves to be compromised,” he said. 

The police boss listed Bayelsa and Rivers as states that were worst hit by violence during the polls, saying police would not tolerate any form of violence or malpractices. 

Asked if the police have made any arrest where hoodlums disrupted the process in some polling units, the police boss: “We’ve made a number of arrest all over the country but probably we shall come out with the number of arrest we have made in terms of those that disputed the process of the election in some areas within the country. We’ve a lot of arrest.”

He said the police is still investigating suspects in connection with political violence across the country. 

“Investigation is ongoing. There is an investigative team that has been setup headed by the Commissioner of Police in charge of legal, they are compiling the case files, they are investigating them. At the end of the investigation, the police in liaison with INEC will prosecute them,” he said. 

Those who attended the Security Council meeting were the National Security Adviser Mr Babagana Monguno; Minister of Defence, Mohammed Mansur Dan- Ali; Minister of Interior, General Abdulrahaman Dambazau; Chief of Defence Staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin; Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai; Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Ibok Ekwe Ibas; Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshall Abubakar Sadique; Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ambassador Abubakar Ahmed Rufai; and the Director General of State Security Service (SSS), Mr Yusuf Magaji Bichi. 

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