Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Idowu Owohunwa, has dismissed reports of widespread violence and voter suppression during the governorship and House of Assembly elections held on March 18. Owohunwa confirmed that there were attacks on voters and electoral officers recorded at some polling units in the state, but argued that the attacks were not widespread. He added that the police responded swiftly to most of the incidents as anticipated.
The police chief noted that instances of violence in some areas within the state were not extensive enough to impact the general dynamics of the process. He stated that most of the police interventions were effective in curtailing the violence because they had anticipated them. In response to a video showing voters overpowering a young man alleged to have snatched a ballot box, Owohunwa called the incident illegal and disclosed that the man was rescued by the police and other security agencies.
Owohunwa also disclosed that the police made numerous arrests and recovered ballot papers in most of the cases of ballot box snatching. He explained that the police had integrated the anticipated violence into their general operational plan and activated that protocol effectively in the instance.
The Lagos State governorship and House of Assembly elections were held on March 18, and there were reports of sporadic violence and voter suppression in some areas of the state. However, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Idowu Owohunwa, has refuted reports of widespread violence and voter suppression during the elections. Owohunwa explained that instances of violence were not widespread enough to disrupt the general dynamics of the process, and the police responded promptly to most of the incidents.
The police chief disclosed that the police made several arrests and recovered ballot papers in most cases of ballot box snatching. He noted that the police anticipated the violence and integrated it into their operational plan, which proved to be effective in curtailing the incidents. Owohunwa also stated that the man alleged to have snatched the ballot box was rescued by the police and other security agencies and was receiving medical attention.