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Ahead of today’s Governorship and House of Assembly elections, Bayelsa State Governor, Honourable Seriake Dickson, has urged the Nigeria Police to assert itself as the chief law enforcement agency for maintenance of law and order.
He said that is the primary role for the police as enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution.
Governor Dickson who had previously accused the military of aiding violence by a particular party in the state, gave the advice on Thursday night when the 11th Commissioner of Police posted to the state in four months, Mr. Olushola David, led a team of officers to pay him a courtesy call in Government House, Yenagoa.
Constitutionally speaking, he said it is the place of the police to play a major role in all civil matters in the country, including providing security during elections.
He stressed that other security agencies only complement the efforts of the police where necessary.
The governor, who assured the new CP of the state government’s support, urged the police to be thoroughly professional in discharging their duties to prevent a reoccurrence of the irregularities that marred the February 23 Presidential and National Assembly polls in parts of the state.
While emphasising the need for institutions and individuals to respect the rule of law, he noted that democracy as well as national unity and stability will continue to suffer setback in the country’s quest for sustainable development if drastic measures are not taken to check the growing lawlessness and impunity.
Dickson, who restated his call on the people of the state to come out en masse to participate in this Saturday’s House of Assembly polls, decried the attitude of politicians who see election as a do-or-die affair.
His words: “We expect the police in this state now led by you for this election purposes to play its crucial, primal role and take charge of election security and monitoring. I have always said that I treat every Commissioner of Police in this state as the chief law enforcement officer. All other agencies have to support the police and the CP.
