By Ayo Kehinde
Mohammed
Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed has denied attention has denied reports attributed to the Conference of
Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP), Kwara State Chapter,that the Federal Government plans to clamp down on the opposition parties in the state ahead of the forthcoming general elections.
“This allegation by the CNPP is a panic reaction to my consistent call on the security agencies to rid Kwara State of all known thugs and other criminals ahead of the elections, in order to provide a level playing field for all the parties”, he said, adding that
“A similar action by the security agencies went a long way in ensuring the success of the 17 Nov. 2018 by-election in the Irepodun/Ekiti/Oke-Ero/Isin Federal Constituency in Kwara, which was won by our party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), and which was widely adjudged to be free, fair and peaceful.
He said, there was reason for “thugs and other criminals” in Kwara to worry, because they will not be allowed to cause violence or disrupt the conduct of the forthcoming elections.
According to him, “the clampdown on criminals in Kwara State has unsettled those whose modus operandi is to use thugs and hooligans to snatch ballot papers, disenfranchise voters and generally terrorize the citizenry during elections. We have no apologies for ridding the state of these delinquents.
He said, “all law-abiding Kwarans have nothing to be afraid of, as the security agencies have assured that they will provide the enabling peaceful environment for voters to exercise their franchise.”
