BayelsaDecides: 87 gunboats deployed to riverine areas – Police

Security agencies have deployed 87 gunboats to Bayelsa State to ensure surveillance of riverine areas during Saturday’s polls in the state.

The Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 5, Dibal Yakadi, said this while appearing in an interview on Channels Television Friday.

He said the police deployed 17 gunboats, the navy, 30, while the army supported with 40 gunboats.

He added that a total of 31,100 police officera have been deployed to the eight local governments in the state, and each local government is “headed by a commissioner of police.”

When the question on the death of some persons reportedly killed in Nembe local government was tossed at him, the AIG said ”the police are still investigating the incident.”

Three people were reportedly killed in the riverine community on Saturday in preelection violence.

Mr Yakadi, nonetheless, assured voters that the police would be on guard to ensure a violence-free election.

“We have deployed enough men to secure the situation in Bayelsa. We are assuring everybody that things would be done well, as far as the police is concerned,” he assured.

There have already been cases of violence recorded in the Bayelsa and Kogi, where elections are billed to take place the same day.

Access to riverine areas in Bayelsa, which are only accessible by boat, has always been a major challenge for electoral officers and security operatives in all the South-south states.