- The Nigeria Police Force has deployed manpower to gather intelligence on politicians planning to use money to induce voters during the Osun state guber poll
- The assistant commissioner of p Abayomi Shogunle explained that the intelligence gathering would enable the police prevent vote buying
- Shogunle warned officers of the force to refrain from fraternizing with politicians or collecting bribe
The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has deployed officers in Osun state to gather intelligence on the strategies politicians are planning to use to induce voters ahead of the governorship election on September 22, The Punch reports.
NAIJ.com gathered that Abayomi Shogunle, the head, public complaint rapid response unit of the police, said this in Osogbo on Tuesday, September 11, during his visit to the correspondents chapel of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Osun state.
Shogunle also called on the people of the state to report any policeman engaged in professional misconduct of violation of human rights before, during and after the election, saying the police were determined to root out bad eggs from the force.
He said: “We are aware of the issue of vote-buying and I know that voters do not need to go to polling units with money except the amount they may need to buy snacks because of the period of the election.
“Members of the Police Intelligence Unit are already working on vote-buying in the state. Police will go after anyone trying to induce voters during this election. You are not expected to go to polling units with huge money because you are not expected to travel far distance to vote. It is expected that you register close to where you reside and that should be a distance you can trek.”
The police boss said the police would be neutral and would not work for any of the political parties or any candidate.
Shogunle assured the people that the police would do everything to stop inducement.
Shogunle, who is an assistant commissioner of police, said the promise by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to redesign the polling booths in a way that would prevent voters from showing off their ballots to anybody would also assist in curbing vote-buying.
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NAIJ.com previously reported that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday, September 3, said it is working on secret balloting to curb vote-buying in the September 22 governorship election in Osun.
The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Osun, Olusegun Agbaje, said this while making a presentation on INEC’s preparations ahead of Osun election at the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room Dialogue Session in Abuja.
Agbaje said that the commission had been worried about vote-buying since the Ekiti elections and was looking for ways to curb it.
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Source: Naija.ng
