Ondo Guber: Police beef up security, deploy operatives across 18 LGAs

The Nigeria Police Force says it has tightened security ahead of Saturday’s governorship election in Ondo State, expressing its readiness to ward off any form of threat during the poll.

This is contained in a statement by the Force Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, on Thursday in Abuja.

Adejobi said the Police had firmed up security architecture in the state by deploying officers across all the 18 local government areas, 203 wards and the 3, 933 polling units in the state.

He assured that at least four Police officers in collaboration with other security personnel will be present at each polling unit, to ensure a smooth poll.

Similarly, the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Ondo State Elections, DIG Sylvester Alabi held a press briefing on Thursday at the Ondo State Police Command Headquarters, Akure, where he addressed officers deployed for the election duty and the members of the press, stressing the readiness of the Police and other security agencies.

“The DIG during his address mentioned that the Force had begun effective deployments of personnel across all 18 Local Government Areas, 203 Wards, and 3,933 Polling Units in the state, assuring the presence of at least four (4) Police Officers in collaboration with officers representing other election security agency, at each polling unit, to ensure a smooth poll.

“In a bid to employ proactive measures against all forms of security threat and interference during the electoral process, the DIG emphasized the importance of Intelligence gathering and firmness,” the statement read.

The DIG further encouraged a collaborative effort between the NPF, other election security agencies and the electorates, reiterating the commitment of the Force to maintaining law and order across the state.

He said there are adequate contingency plans to respond appropriately to issues that may arise before, during and after the election.

Alabi called on the citizens to abide by the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2023, (as amended) and INEC guidelines, as well as all other extant laws of the land, as every electoral offender and troubleshooter would be arrested and prosecuted accordingly.