The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), James Oppong-Boanuh has assured the citizenry that the police administration is ready to protect the lives of the citizenry as the country goes to the polls on December 7.

Mr Oppong-Boanuh who is on an official working visit to the Oti, Volta and Eastern Regions to assess the operational preparedness of the commands ahead of the General Elections, assured that security will be tightened to curb crime before, during and after the polls.

In this regard, he called on traditional authorities to lend the needed support to the police administration to protect them against criminals who may want to use the elections as a cover to engage in their nefarious activities.

“The initiative will tighten up the security in the region to ensure that the lives of electorates and citizens are well protected during the election period,” he revealed.

Meanwhile, the Ghana Police Service as part of its new strategy has revealed that only uniformed personnel will be deployed to provide security during this year’s polls.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP), Dr Sayibu Gariba, Director of Operations of the Ghana Police Service warned that the National Election Security Task Force (NESTF) would not tolerate the deployment of “thugs” to polling stations by anybody in the name of the Police and other security agencies.

“And anything outside this is not part of the National Election Security Task Force and nobody or agency is allowed to deploy.”