Police To Prosecute 185 Major Electoral Offences, Arrests 203 Thugs 

The Nigeria Police Force said over 185 electoral cases were to be prosecuted in court by the Force following that arrest of electoral offender in the just concluded presidential and National Assembly elections on Saturday, February 25.

According to the police, the operatives of the Force on election monitoring duty during the presidential and National Assembly polls on Saturday February 25, arrested 203 electoral offenders on the election day in 185 incidences.

This was disclosed by the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, on Monday, when he met with Strategic Police Managers, comprising Deputy Inspectors-General of Police and members of the Force Management Team, Assistant Inspectors-General of Police, Commissioners of Police, and heads of tactical investigative and operational units of the Force.

The meeting which took place at the Goodluck Jonathan Peacekeeping Hall, Force Headquarters, Abuja, was for the debriefing and appraising of the officers posted for election security management duties.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Force Headquarters, Abuja, CSP, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, in a statement on Monday, said the meeting was to review the performance of the Nigeria Police Force at the February 25th Presidential and National Assembly Elections, identify gaps, and perfect the action plan for the forthcoming March 11th Elections.

According to him, the IGP applauded the high level of resilience, and utmost professionalism displayed by Officers and men of the Nigeria Police as well as other security agencies in the course of the election security operations in line with the Reviewed Standard Operational Guidelines and Rules for Police Officers and Other Security Agents on Electoral Duties which was issued to all officers in the countdown to the election operations. 

The IGP revealed that about 185 major incidents were responded to by the Police across the country during the elections.

He added that a total of 203 offenders linked to various electoral offences and sundry crimes have so far been arrested.

IGP revealed further that 18 firearms of various calibres were recovered from political thugs during the exercise. 

He emphasized that the cases are at various stages of investigation at the Nigeria Police Electoral Offences Desks and assures that they would be concluded and processed to the Legal Department of the Independent National Electoral Commission for prosecution.

"He equally attributed the professionalism of the officers to the various pre-election pieces of training, meticulous planning, massive operational assets procurement and deployment, as well as prioritized welfare

"The Inspector-General of Police reiterates that the Nigeria Police is committed to evolving pathways to incrementally strengthen the Force's operational capacity and professional knowledge in navigating through the complex electoral process dynamics to police our democratic heritage and meet the expectations of the electorates." He said.