THE Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has ordered the immediate beef-up of security in all states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
The order came in the wake of series of violent protests and unrest by members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) who are demanding the release of their leader, Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky.
Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, a Deputy Commissioner of Police, in a statement in Abuja Friday, relayed the assurance of the IGP that proactive measures, including aerial surveillance of major cities, were being taken to ensure the safety and security of lives and property of all Nigerians.
Osoba to Okurounmu: You’re attacking out of envy
Mba said all zonal Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIGs) and Commissioners of Police (CPs) nationwide had been mandated to ensure that customised security arrangements were put in place in their Areas of Responsibility (AORs) to checkmate the activities of criminals and any possible threat to public peace.
He implored citizens to be wary of circulating unsubstantiated security advisories capable of creating unnecessary apprehension in the country.
The IGP has also advised all would-be protesters to ensure they express their grievances within the ambit of the law so as not to infringe on the constitutional rights of other citizens or cause breach of the public peace.
Why FG continues to ignore court orders on El- Zakzaky, Dasuki, others— Malami, former AGF
Meanwhile, a frmer Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), has justified the continued detention of the IMN leader, El-Zakzaky; a former National Security Adviser, Colonel Sambo Dasuki (rtd), contrary to several court orders.
Malami, a minister-nominee, was asked by the Senate Minority Leader, Senator Eyinnaya Abaribe, why the President Muhammadu Buhari administration had ignored court orders granting certain individuals bails while he (Malami) was the nation’s chief prosecuting officer.
Malami told the Senate that the Federal Government ignored the court orders in deference to the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
He also claimed that the individual interests of the likes of El-Zakzaky and Dasuki were in conflict with the public interest.
“I concede that I had a responsibility as the Attorney General of the Federation to protect individual rights. But looking at the provisions of Section 174 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I want to reiterate and state further that the office of the Attorney General is made to protect public interest and where the individual interests conflict with public interest, the interest of 180 million Nigerians that are interested in having this country integrated must naturally prevail.
“And I think that position has been very well captured by the apex court that had stated in the case of Alhaji Asari Dokubo and the Federal Government of Nigeria that where an individual interest conflicts public interest, the latter naturally prevails,” he said.
Justice Gabriel Kolawole of the Federal High Court, Abuja, had, on Friday, December 2, 2016, ordered the unconditional release of the Nigeria’s Shi’ite sect, El-Zakzaky and his wife, Zeenah, from detention within 45 days.
The two have been in detention since December 2015 without any charge following a clash between members of their group, the IMN, and the military in Kaduna State, which reportedly led to the killing of more than 350 of the sect members.
Colonel Dasuki (rtd.), a former security adviser to former President Goodluck Jonathan, has also been languishing in detention since December 2015 despite being granted bail by three different courts.
Dasuki is facing trial for alleged unlawful possession of arms and money laundering charges brought against him by the Federal Government. He had allegedly diverted and shared to politicians and cronies, about $2.1 billion meant for arms procurement to fight Boko Haram terrorists.
Justice Adeniyi Ademola had in 2015 admitted Dasuki to bail but the bail order was disobeyed by the Federal Government and the Department of State Services (DSS).
Other bails granted Dasuki by Justices Peter Affen and Husseini Baba-Yusuf of the FCT High Court were also ignored by the government.
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