News / National
Zimbabwe police ready for polls
24 Jul 2018 at 18:39hrs | Views
The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) says they are ready for the harmonised elections slated for Monday next week and all the necessary measures to ensure a peaceful, safe and secure environment are now in place.
With only a few days before the harmonised elections, all eyes are on Zimbabwe and ZRP Commissioner General Godwin Matanga said the police force is ready for the elections and members of the force will professionally discharge their mandate.
He said every citizen is expected to act responsibly, observe the laws of the country and to cooperate fully with election authorities.
The Commissioner General implored leaders of political parties and their members to be mindful of their utterances and to refrain from using hate speech.
"We have already increased police visibility through focused deployments of personnel throughout the country in the build up towards this election and we shall continue to do so on the day of elections as well as the period after elections. Identified hotspots prone to political violence and other volatile areas are being monitored on a continuous basis," he said.
Commissioner General Matanga said 71 000 police officers will be deployed for the elections, and also assured Zimbabweans, election observers and journalists that their safety and security is guaranteed.
He urged election observers to register their presence with the police so that arrangements for their security can be made.
The police chief also commended Zimbabweans for demonstrating political maturity during the campaign period, saying isolated cases of politically motivated violence and cases involving the defacing of campaign posters were recorded and perpetrators have appeared before the courts and some are still pending.
On the issue of the postal ballot, Commissioner General Matanga clarified that the police officers who applied were afforded their right to exercise their democratic right and they did so in accordance with Electoral Act.
With only a few days before the harmonised elections, all eyes are on Zimbabwe and ZRP Commissioner General Godwin Matanga said the police force is ready for the elections and members of the force will professionally discharge their mandate.
He said every citizen is expected to act responsibly, observe the laws of the country and to cooperate fully with election authorities.
The Commissioner General implored leaders of political parties and their members to be mindful of their utterances and to refrain from using hate speech.
"We have already increased police visibility through focused deployments of personnel throughout the country in the build up towards this election and we shall continue to do so on the day of elections as well as the period after elections. Identified hotspots prone to political violence and other volatile areas are being monitored on a continuous basis," he said.
Commissioner General Matanga said 71 000 police officers will be deployed for the elections, and also assured Zimbabweans, election observers and journalists that their safety and security is guaranteed.
He urged election observers to register their presence with the police so that arrangements for their security can be made.
The police chief also commended Zimbabweans for demonstrating political maturity during the campaign period, saying isolated cases of politically motivated violence and cases involving the defacing of campaign posters were recorded and perpetrators have appeared before the courts and some are still pending.
On the issue of the postal ballot, Commissioner General Matanga clarified that the police officers who applied were afforded their right to exercise their democratic right and they did so in accordance with Electoral Act.
Source - zbc
