Ahead of the forthcoming general elections, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Abiodun Alabi has assured residents of the state of adequate security before, during and after the elections.
The CP also disclosed that in preparation for the elections, the State Command had commenced raiding of some black spots in the State and it’s environs.
Speaking at a ‘Town Hall symposium with 2023 Lagos State Gubernatorial Candidates’ organised by Societal Concern in conjunction with the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Ogba Lagos, the CP, who was represented by Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP Oludotun Odubona, said it is the duty of the Police to identify all the polling units in all the local government area of the State, and start planning ahead of the election.
He said: “There cannot be crime without influencing substances, people that intend to engage in crime, are influenced by one drug or the other. That is why we are going after areas where they are selling drugs and where they are smoking”.
Asked to identify areas that have been raided, the commissioner said: “I will not tell you all the black spots that we have raided. Arrests have been made and screening are being done, some have been taken to court, while some have been arraigned before the Mobile Court. All the DPOs have been directed to continually raiding and ensuring that these areas are well swept before the election. Raiding are already going on, to sweep areas where we believe there are concentration of all these bad boys”.
He stated that as the nation gets closer to the general election, Police would engage in stop-and-search exercise, to search out for weapons and arms that are on the move, and being transported to different areas.
According to him, security of citizens during election can be divided into three categories, namely, preparation of security before election, security during election and security after the election.
On whether the Police was prepared for the forthcoming election, he said: “We are totally ready. We are also having collaborations with some sister agencies to support the police with manpower, the Police alone cannot cover everywhere, that is why we need in collaborations with sister agencies, so that we can send them to areas that have been identified.
“Mobilisation of manpower to all the polling units, requires collaborations with our sister agencies, such as Civil Defence, Immigration, Customs, SSS, the Correctional Services, Road Safety, NDLEA and the Military”, he added.
He said the Police and other sister agencies are ready to protect all sensitive materials like the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), and the ballot papers.
In his address, Human Rights lawyer Mr Femi Falana SAN, represented by the Chairman Committee for the Defence of Human Right (CDHR), Lagos chapter, Comrade Kehinde Adeoye, stated that to have good governance, Nigerians must be ready to fight for it.
Falana also called on the federal government to address the disturbing wave of insecurity and dwindling economic challenges bedevilling the nation
He said there can be no good governance without security of life and property, stressing that the state of insecurity in Nigeria has constituted a serious threat to the conduct of credible elections.
In his welcome address, the Provost of NIJ Mr. Gbenga Adefaye, who is also the General Manager and Editor-in-Chief of Vanguard Media Ltd said the timing of the symposium is appropriate to give the students a sense of belonging, and for them to be abreast with their constitutional responsibilities.
