Osun Poll: Police, INEC Personnel Begin Deployment To 30 LGAs

…Accord, ADC Campaign Offices Shut Down
…Skeletal Activities At APC Campaign Office

The deployment of police personnel and electoral officials with non-sensitive electoral materials to the 30 local government areas of Osun State commenced on Friday ahead of Saturday’s governorship election.

The deployment took place as residents of Osogbo, the state capital, went about their normal activities, with no major disruption reported.

Government offices across the state, however, remained closed following the declaration of Friday as a public holiday by the state government.

The holiday was intended to enable registered voters who reside outside their places of registration to travel to their respective towns and villages to exercise their franchise.

Commercial banks also remained closed for business, although their Automated Teller Machine (ATM) centres were operational.

The Accord campaign office of Governor Ademola Adeleke and the ADC campaign office of Najeem Salaam, both located in the Ogo-Oluwa area of Osogbo, were shut when visited.

In contrast, the campaign office of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, was open, although only a few secretariat workers were seen attending skeletal activities without the usual campaign-day bustle.

At the state headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), journalists and representatives of election observation groups continued to arrive to resolve accreditation-related issues ahead of the poll.

At about 1:45 p.m., when THE WHISTLER visited the Osun State Police Command headquarters along Ring Road, Osogbo, police personnel were seen being conveyed out of the premises in batches.

Several other personnel, apparently deployed from other states, were also seen within the command’s premises with their luggage, awaiting onward deployment to their designated duty posts.

The State Commissioner of Police and the Police Public Relations Officer were said to be away on field operations across the state, so they were not available for comments on the preparations for the election.

Security personnel, particularly policemen, were observed patrolling different parts of Osogbo in patrol vehicles.

Despite the increased security presence and movement of election personnel, the atmosphere across the state capital remained largely peaceful as residents prepared for the election.

Although there are 14 political parties participating in the election, only three – Accord, APC, and ADC are the front runners in the race.