Osun West bye election: INEC appeals to politicians to keep thugs away from polling centres

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has appealed to  politicians  to keep thugs away from  polling and collation centres during Saturday’s   Osun West Senatorial bye-election.
Mr Baritor Kpagih, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for the bye-election,  made the appeal during a  stakeholders’ meeting held on the election on Monday in Osogbo.
He gave an assurance that  security agents would be on ground during and after the election to provide security.
Kpagih, however, appealed to politicians to keep their thugs away from polling and collation centres to make the job  of security personnel  easier.
He said he had visited the 10  local government areas where the election would hold and discovered that people in those areas were highly  educated, civilised  and peaceful.
Kpagih, who  expressed optimism  that the election would be conducted  peacefully,  said  “we are going to have a good day.’’
He said 11 political parties would be taking part in the bye election while accreditation and voting would be carried out simultaneously on  election day as from 8 am to 2 pm.
The INEC official said only Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and smart card readers would be used for the election.
He  said  INEC would create voting points close to polling units to ease long queues and congestions at polling centres.
Osun State Commissioner of Police, Mr Olufimihan Adeoye, also appealed to politicians to conduct themselves well  during and after the election.
Adeoye equally advised  politicians and  candidates of political parties  to impress it on their supporters to  conduct themselves in  a manner  that would not violate the law.
He said anybody caught violating the law would be dealt with as an individual and not as a member of a political party.
The police boss said those without accreditation or clearance should stay away from  polling units  and  collation centres on election day.
He also said  movement would be restricted between  6 am and 6 pm in the senatorial areas where the election would  take  place and advised  political parties  to mobilise their members to  vote during the outlined time.
Mr Idowu Adebowale, the Osun State Comptroller of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), said only eligible Nigerians would be allowed to take part in the election.
Adebowale said  that those married to Nigerians were still not qualified to vote except they had  formally applied and naturalised  to become  citizens.
The Osun Coordinator of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Mr Emmanuel Attah,  warned politicians and their agents not to harass, intimidate or attack any  corps member  engaged by INEC for the election.
Attah said the NYSC was  an apolitical  institution and  corps members  should  not be molested.