In order to checkmate electoral violence in the forthcoming gubernatorial election in Kogi State, the Inspector General of Police (IG), Solomon Arase, has vowed to deploy seven police officers to each of the poling units across the state.

Represented by the Kogi State  Commissioner of Police, Mr. Emmanuel Ojukwu, at a sensitisation seminar organised by the INEC on Wednesday in Lokoja, the IG disclosed that flash spots  and some elements considered to be security threat to the coming election had been identified.

He said his men would soon swing into action to curtail the excesses of the identified potential trouble makers, promising to provide security before, during and after the election in collaboration with other security agencies.
According to him: “We are to deploy  seven policemen  to each of the 4,548 polling units in the state, we assure electorates that adequate security will be provided.

“We are working hard to deploy more police men and women to guarantee  law and order during the poll,” he assured.

The IG added that the force will mount an aerial surveillance across nooks and crannies  of the state to  forestall violence and provide tight security at collation centres.

Also speaking at the occasion, the Resident Commissioner of the Independent  National Electoral Commission ( INEC) in the state, Mr. Halilu Pai, assured the elderly and people with special needs that they will  be accredited and allowed to vote first  during the election.

Pai who stated the readiness of the commission to conduct a free and fair election said that additional 47, 389 new voters had been registered in the state, saying that newly registered voters  will receive their permanent voters’ card before the election.

The commissioner added  that the recent audit of PVCs carried out by the office had indicated that 1.9 million  permanent voters’ cards had been distributed while 308,159 are yet to be collected.

Pai assured that the commission will embark on voter education and enlightenment  in due course, urging the stakeholders, including the media to be part of the campaign.