Election 2020: Don't dare us - Police warns about violence

Deputy Commissioner of the Ghana Police Service, Sayibu Pabi Gariba, has sent a word of caution to politicians and other perpetrators of violence who may attempt interfering with the electoral process in the upcoming 2020 polls.

According to him, the police service has picked pointers from recent happenings in the just ended voters registration process and reinforced its strategy ahead of the impending polls.

The strategy he says, are such that persons who may dare using their influences, in whichever capacity to mar the peace-intended process will be dealt with drastically.

Speaking at CDD’s roundtable discussion on electoral violence in Ghana Tuesday, DCOP Gariba said;

“For the 2020 elections, if you are not part of the security agencies that are deployed and mandated to deploy security, don’t dare. If you dare, the security agencies will deal with you.”

Rather than complain and point fingers at the police service he says, all relevant stakeholders and the Ghanaian populace must work together with the police to ensure peaceful elections, void of any violence and brutality.

“It’s not about the security agencies…its about the wholistic approach for peaceful 2020 elections. So, the political parties, the perpetrators of the violence that we have presented here, all stakeholders must contribute for a peaceful election 2020 and not leave all the burden and be complaining about the police and national security. We must work together,” he added.

On the preparation of the service towards dealing with any eventualities, DCOP Gariba noted that systems are being put in place to that effect.

"Various training programs are being held. It’s a whole spectrum of agencies that work together. We can arrest, investigate, and process but some of the actions are done by someone else," he stated.