LAGOS POLICE DISMISSES CLAIMS OF WIDESPREAD VOTER SUPPRESSION AND VIOLENCE

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Idowu Owohunwa, has dismissed reports of widespread acts of violence and voter suppression in the state governorship election held on Saturday, March 18.

Speaking in an interview with Channels TV, Owohunwa confirmed the attacks on voters and electoral officers recorded at some Lagos polling units, saying, “It is true that we’ve recorded instances of violence in some areas within the state.” He however added that the incidents were “not as widespread as to affect the general dynamics of the process”.

According to him, most of the instances were “properly responded to by the police because we anticipated them”.

When asked if the command had anticipated the violence, he said, “Yes, in some instances. As security practitioners, when you plan operations of this nature, you must anticipate that some elements will want to become adversaries in the process. We anticipated and then we integrated that into our general operational plan and we activated that protocol effectively in this instance. Most of those breaches, the police were able to respond promptly.”