… To deploy 3 helicopters, 200 pilots, officers
Ngozi Uwujare
As part of measures to ensure a hitch-free election on October 10, the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu has tasked the Police Air Wing to ensure the safety of voters and election materials before, during and after the poll.
Commissioner of Police, Police Air Wing, Mr Danladi Lalas, who disclosed this said the command has trained over 200 pilots and career officers to ensure compliance with the COVID-19 pandemic protection procedure for the Ondo State gubernatorial election.
He said the Police Air Wing is under strict instructions from IGP Adamu, to ensure the safety of voters and election materials.
He said: “the Police Air Wing is totally ready with the support of the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu who has given us a serious lecture on the safety of the electoral materials and he is expecting nothing more than a free and fair election in Ondo State. He is expecting us to carry out our duty with thorough professionalism before, during and after the election”.
He said the officers will maintain constant surveillance to ensure the electorate are safe and come out to vote for the candidates of their choice.
“We are going to deploy three helicopters to cover the three senatorial districts of Ondo State. There will be constant surveillance to checkmate the miscreants and force them to relocate from the state during and after the forthcoming elections. We use this opportunity to warn the hoodlums who want to make any attempt to carry the ballot boxes that they will be dealt with and will fail at the end of the day.
“We did the same in the last election in Edo State and in Kogi State and we thanked God that Nigerians have praised and appreciated our efforts in Edo. We received a distress call and we patrolled for three hours when the miscreants wanted to hijack the ballot boxes. We smoked them out and they abandoned the ballot boxes and the hoodlums were arrested” he said.
Lalas added that the helicopters will also be available to assist the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), with the movement of personnel and materials in difficult terrains.
“If INEC officials had challenges with the deployment of electoral materials and staff, we will use helicopters for safe delivery and help in carrying them to the polling centres especially in the Riverine areas so that the election will be a free and fair election,” he said.