MINISTER of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, yesterday said the deployment of armed security operatives, including soldiers to Osun State for Saturday’s governorship election was to prevent breakdown of law and order before, during and after the governorship election.
This came as the Acting Inspector General of Police, IGP, Suleiman Abba, warned politicians without legitimate business in the election to steer clear of the state during the elections.
This came as the Acting Inspector General of Police, IGP, Suleiman Abba, warned politicians without legitimate business in the election to steer clear of the state during the elections.
Obanikoro, at briefing in Osogbo, said the soldiers deployed to the state were not to intimidate people, but to ensure peace in all parts of the state, noting that the main rationale behind the deployment of the security agents was for maintenance of peace and orderliness.
He spoke against the backdrop of alleged victimisation of residents of the state by the armed security operatives, saying “those you are seeing are trained security personnel who are after peace in the country.”
Steer clear, IGP warns meddlesome politicians
Similarly, Acting IGP, Mr. Abba, has warned politicians who have no business in the election to steer clear during the elections.
Speaking with State House correspondents after a meeting with Vice President Namadi Sambo at the presidential villa, Abuja, the Acting IGP said he was already mobilising adequate security to ensure the election was conducted under a conducive atmosphere.
According to him, “when I took over on Friday, I met an operational order in place, I went through it quickly and made a number of adjustments, which include the fact that we need to be there early enough, so I adjusted the time that officers were directed to report.
”I made sure that by Saturday, they were there. The aim is that if anyone is training anybody to cause violence, we are telling him that we would make sure the law takes its course.
”In fact, my advice is this, if you don’t have any business to do with Osun election, just don’t go there because the law will catch up with you. This is my advice.”
PDP will win all South West States —Presidency
Meanwhile, the Presidency said yesterday with the assurance of the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Senator Iyiola Omisore, winning the election, the entire south-west states would return to PDP in 2015.
The Presidency also explained that it became imperative for President Goodluck Jonathan to announce in Osogbo that Police would ensure security before and during the election as well as ensure heavy security presence following reports of planned mayhem during the election.
Speaking with journalists in Abuja, Special Adviser to President Jonathan on Political Matters, Professor Rufai Ahmed Alkali, said it was necessary for the South West Zone to return to the PDP by 2015 to shake off what he described as the toga of opposition which it had long been identified with.
Alkali, who noted that Nigeria should be grateful for to President Jonathan for making the last governorship election in Ekiti peaceful, however expressed confidence that Osun election would also be peaceful, noting it was glaring that the PDP was the most grounded in the zone given the manner the electorate in the south west had been rooting for the ruling party lately.
