Ondo Poll: Police Warn Politicians, Parties Against Violence

Police in Ondo State have warned politicians and parties planning to cause disturbance during Saturday’s governorship election in the state that they will be dealt with. The major parties in the race – the Actions Congress of Nigeria, the Peoples Democratic Party – have been accusing each other of stockpiling arms and engaging the services of thugs to attack those who will stand in their way to rig the poll. But the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Danladi Mshelbwala, warned on Tuesday the police would not tolerate violence on Election Day. Mshelbwala told the News Agency of Nigeria in Akure that there were policemen on the ground to provide security for voters and election materials. The CP said,”You can see that the atmosphere is election permissive and I want to assure you that there will be no violence or any form of disturbance during and after the election. “The police will not allow any politician or a political party to cause disturbance of any kind during the election; so anyone who plans to cause crisis should think twice because we are ready for them.” According to him, the State Security Service, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Nigeria Immigration Service, Nigerian Prisons and the Nigerian Customs Service will be on the ground during the poll. The state Commandant of NSCDC, Mr. Issa Shuaib, said the command would deploy more than 3,000 officers ahead of the poll. “The command’s armed squad has been and will continue to be on 24 hours daily patrol to maintain peace and order, therefore people should be free to come out and exercise their voting right,” he said.