The House of Representatives is disturbed by the
degenerating security situation in Rivers State, following the face-off between
Governor Rotimi Amaechi and Commissioner of Police Mbu Joseph Mbu.
The House, also yesterday named a
14-man ad hoc Committee to investigate oil theft .
The lawmakers mandated House
Committees on Police Affairs and Justice to liaise with the Police Affairs
Commission, the Inspector General of Police(IGP) and the Rivers State
Government to fashion out ways of improving the working relationship between
the Rivers State Police and the state government. They are to report back to
the House within one week.
Peter Edeh (ANPP, Ebonyi), who
raised the motion as a matter of urgent public importance, said: “The motion
was meant to find means of guaranteeing safety of the people of the state based
on the prevailing circumstances because a former militant has raised the alarm
that there is a build- up of arms in the state.
“This is not good for the state
because both the governor and the police chief can guarantee their own safety
but the safety of the masses is not guaranteed.”
Edeh reeled out instances of
altercations between the two whereby the governor dared the police chief to
shoot him while the Police chief labelled the governor dictator.
“Those statements have shown that
the working relationship has completely broken down between the two.
“Meanwhile, Section 14 (l)b of the
Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) empowers the
governor to give directives to the Police Commissioner, but in this instance,
the question is, ‘has the governor given such directive?’ We don’t know,” Edeh
added.
He noted that it is more worrisome
that Inspector-General of Police Mohammed Abubakar has so far refrained from
addressing this matter or commenting on it publicly.
The lawmaker noted that on the basis
of the prevailing circumstances, the legislators’ intervention became
imperative.
Edeh said: “We need to intervene if
we want Rivers State to be safe and the people sleep with their two eyes
closed”.
Deputy Speaker Emeka Ihedioha, who
presided, put the motion to voice vote and it was unanimously carried.
Ihedioha announced the 14-member ad
hoc committee on the investigation of oil theft with Bashir Adamu, Chairman
Committee on Defence as Chairman.
Others are Chairman Committee on
Petroleum Downstream, Dakuku Peterside, Chairman, Committee on Finance,
Abdulmumin Jibrin, Chairman Interior Committee, Umar Bature, Chairman, Marine
Transport Committee, Ugwuanyi Ifeanyi, Tajudeen Yusuf, Opeyemi Bamidele,
Sokonte Davies, Edie Mbadiwe, Nnenna Ukeje and Aisha Ahmed.
In Port Harcourt, Attorney-General
and Commissioner for Justice Worgu Boms urged the Police Commissioner to act
within the law.
Boms said Mbu should discharge his
responsibilities within the precepts of law and not allow himself to be used by
political forces against the state and Amaechi.
The Attorney-General bemoaned Mbu’s
utterances and conduct which, he said, could lead to anarchy and decried his
ban on street processions.
Boms said the Police Commissioner
had no legal power to ban protests, explaining that the Public Order Act
authorises only the Governor to grant permission for a street procession.
“The Commissioner of Police is a
Commissioner of Police and not a lawmaker or a law interpreter – functions that
statutorily and constitutionally belong to the Parliament and the Judiciary,
respectively. The Commissioner of Police is only a law enforcer and no more.
Yet, being neither a lawmaker nor a law interpreter, he (Mbu) has continued to
act in both capacities through his speeches and conduct all of which have
combined to signpost a preference for anarchy in place of observance and
maintenance of law and order for which the Police are established and for which
he was employed.
Inspector General of Police,
Mohammed Abubakar yesterday said his office had not received a petition from
the Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi calling for the redeployment of
the Rivers Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mbu Joseph Mbu.
Abubakar stated this while
responding to reporters inquiries when eight police detectives were recognised
for outstanding performance.
Governor Amaechi had called for the
redeployment of Mbu for what the governor described as the worsening security
situation in Rivers State.
The governor and the police
commissioner have been at daggers drawn over the festering political crisis in
the state in which the police boss is perceived to have taken sides with Abuja
forces against the governor’s camp.
Tags
Politics