By Adesina Soyooye
Barely 48 hours to the off-circle elections in Imo, Bayelsa and Kogi States, the Department of State Services (DSS) has given a stern warning to individuals and groups against inflammatory statements.
The warning came as tension rose in the three States with groups and politicians making all kinds of allegations against officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and threatening fire and brimstone.
The DSS, also, warned individuals who may decide to engage in “illegitimate acts or conducts inimical to public order”, that they “will be decisively dealt with as dictated by the law.”
The Service said it has observed “rising trends and patterns of incendiary comments by some personalities of influence and representatives of non-governmental entities within and outside the country.”
The DSS said such statements “run against public peace and harmony”, and therefore, urged key political players and their supporters in the affected States to “conform to the rules of engagement and specifically the electoral laws to avert situations likely to undermine the processes.”
Peter Afunanya, the Director of Public Relations and Strategic Communications, Department of State Services National Headquarters, Abuja signed the statement.
According to Afunanya the Service has “substantially liaised with INEC, sister security agencies and relevant NGOs to ensure hitch-free exercises in the affected States.”
The statement reads in part:
“It is strongly believed that a resort to acerbic pronouncements by certain persons will not only heat the polity but set the ground for deep-seethed animosities and divisions among the populace. Also, it serves the country no good if its citizens, whether at home or abroad, demarket or subvert her through misleading and false narratives.
“Similarly, the Service urges key players and their supporters in Kogi, Imo and Bayelsa States to conform to the rules of engagement and specifically the electoral law during the 11th November 2023 gubernatorial elections in the areas.
“However, individuals or groups that may decide to engage in illegitimate acts or inimical conducts to public order will be decisively dealt with as dictated by the law. Forewarned is forearmed.”
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