Police deploy 9000 men

Police

The Cross River State Police Command is to deploy 9,000 personnel in today’s election in Cross River State.

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr Samson Wudah, told newsmen in Calabar yesterday that 7,469 personnel would be deployed from the state command while the remaining 1,531 would come from other contingents like Benue, Ebonyi and Akwa Ibom.

Wudah said the police had been patrolling strategic locations in the state to ensure adequate security.

He urged the youth to refrain from being enticed by politicians to create unnecessary problems. “If they do that and the law catches up with them, we will not spare them,” he warned.

The Commissioner advised the electorate to conduct themselves peacefully during the election.

He urged politicians in the state to play the game according to the rules by cautioning their followers to be law abiding during the polls.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mr Hogan Bassey, also said yesterday: “Preparations are in top gear and we don’t envisage any hitch. Even if there would be any hitch, it will be quelled. Proactive measures have been put in place. Cross River is generally a peaceful state, but we are not taking anything for granted.”

After a meeting between the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC ) and other security agencies in the state on Thursay, they promised to work with the police to ensure a hitch-free election.

According to Bassey, men of the Nigerian Army, Navy, Air force, Civil Defence, Customs and others will today assist the police in ensuring law and order. 

Meanwhile INEC has said it is fully prepared to conduct a free and fair governorship election in the state today. The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Mr Mike Igini, assured all the parties involved in the election in the state of a level playing ground.

The state has 18 local government areas, 193 registration areas and 2,283 polling units. Working for INEC in the polls are 212 collation officers, 2,283 presiding officers and 4,926 trained ad hoc staff. 

There are 1,252, 906 registered voters in the state. Non-sensitive materials like cubicles, ink and stationery were deployed to the INEC offices in the local government areas earlier in the week. The lectoral body also started deploying sensitive meterials like ballot papers and result sheets at about 5.30 am yesterday.

Twelve political parties  will participate in today’s election.

The parties, their candidates and running mates are: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Sen. Liyel Imoke and Mr Efiok Cobham; Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Pastor Usani Usani and Mr David Okon; All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Mr Patrick Okomiso and Mr Edem Eyo-Ita; African Political System (APS), Mr Odey

Ekunke and Mr Igba Julius; Labour Party (LP), Mrs Imah Nsa-Adegoke and Mr Tony Bassey Nneji; Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), Mr Goddie Akpama and Mr Obo Okey; The United National Party for Development (UNDP), Dr Ebiti Ndok and Mr Ogar Okang.

Others are Hope Democratic Party (HDP), Dr Theophilus Onyuku and Mrs Grace Essien; Democratic Front for a People’s Federation (DFPF), Mr James Ebri and Mr Offiong Henshaw; Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), Miss Mary Ekpere and Mr Mens Ikpeme; Congress for Democratic Change (CDC), Mr Cletus Inyang and Mr Ekanem Bassey; and African Liberation Party (ALP), Mr Victor Udom and Mr Frank Achums.