Two Years After, PSC Begins Trial Of Policemen Found Liable Of Electoral Fraud in 2019 |The Source

By Ayodele Oni

Officers of the Nigerian Police Force, (NPF) found wanting during the 2019 General Elections are to be prosecuted, the Police Service Commission,(PSC) has vowed.

Already, the Commission has concluded arrangements to officially write to the Acting Inspector-General of Police on the status of Police offenders during the elections with a view to ensuring that they are prosecuted.

A Commissioner in the Commission, Justice Clara Ogunbiyi, JSC,  pointed out that there was need to look into the pitfalls of the 2019 election policing in order to devise strategies for an improvement during the next General Elections.

According to the retired Judge, the Commission will also be asking the Acting Inspector General of Police to conclude investigations on the cases of Nigerians who undermined the electoral process during the General Elections and hand over the files to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, the body backed by law to prosecute election offenders.

A statement by the head of media of PSC, Mr Ikechukwu Ani stated that Justice Ogunbiyi, who is Chairman, PSC fact-finding team on election policing, was speaking at a Virtual Meeting with some members of Non Governmental organizations, (NGO) which monitored the election.

The Non-Governmental Human Rights Organizations that participated in the meeting were the CLEEN Foundation represented by its Executive Director, Dr. Benson Olugbo and the Situation Room, represented by Agianpe Ashanga and Akwu Ogbuadu of Policy and Advocacy Centre, PLAAC.

She noted that the Commission would play its required part in ensuring that  Policemen on election duties during the 2023 General elections commit themselves to the rules of engagement.

In his remark, Barrister Rommy Mom, a Commissioner in the Commission, representing the Non Governmental Human Rights Organizations expressed delight that the Commission and the Human Rights Bodies were coming together to forge a common front in the interest of a better Nigeria.

He assured that the Commission would sustain this initiative and ensure that it positively affects election policing during the 2023 General Elections.

The statement added that participants at the meeting had insisted that election offenders during the 2019 General Elections must be prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others during the 2023 elections.

The Commission had earlier received memoranda on the pitfalls of election policing in 2019 and recommendations for better policing in 2023 from Nigerians and other stakeholders on election security.

Bar. Mom, and Babatunde Dada, Deputy Director and legal Adviser to the Commission were the other members of the fact finding panel at the meeting.

Participants at the Meeting had insisted that election offenders during the 2019 General Elections must be prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others during the 2023 elections. They noted that the acting Inspector General of Police should hand over files of cases of these offenders to INEC for prosecution.

The Commission had earlier called and received memoranda on the pitfalls of election policing in 2019 and recommendations for better policing in 2023 from Nigerians and other stakeholders on election security.