The Ghana Police Service says it is confident its security deployment for the Ayawaso East by-election is sufficient to address any eventuality as the process moves into the final stage.
Director of Public Affairs of the Ghana Police Service, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Grace Ansah-Akrofi, gave the assurance after the close of polls on Tuesday, March 3.
She disclosed that the Inspector-General of Police had personally monitored the election on the ground to ensure that the security measures put in place were functioning as planned.
“As we usually do, the IGP would always like to hit the ground and ensure for himself that the deployment we put in place and the measures we deployed are working as expected,” she said.
According to DCOP Ansah-Akrofi, the IGP, the Regional Commander, Operations Officers, and other personnel have toured the 114 polling centres and observed calm and orderly voting.
She described the by-election as one of the most peaceful the country has witnessed.
“So far, everything has gone very peacefully. We haven’t recorded any incidents at all, and we are happy,” she stated.
With polls closed and collation underway, she expressed confidence that security presence at the collation centre is adequate.
“We are confident that our deployment at the collation centre is sufficient to cater for any eventuality,” she added.
DCOP Ansah-Akrofi attributed the smooth process to effective security planning and the cooperation of stakeholders, including political actors and voters in the constituency.
She commended residents of Ayawaso East for conducting themselves responsibly and urged Ghanaians to continue embracing peaceful democratic practices.
“As we grow as a nation in our electoral processes, we hope that everybody learns that election is not about fighting, it is not about violence, it is just about coming and casting your votes, making your choice and let peace prevail,” she said.
