The blame game started over corruption allegation made made by Sen. Misau against the Police.
Sen. Misau was one-time serving officer of the Police, he has seen it all in the country’s policing service, he should and known all the good and the bad omen of Police.
Sen. Misau is now a serving senator at the National House of Assembly.
Sen. Misau as an individual has seen it all at the Police level and at the Senate.
Sen. Misau purportedly alleged that there has been racketeering in the promotion exercise made by the Police Service Commission, PSC headed by an ex-Inspector General of Police, IG-P.
That the IG-P collected bribes ranging from N10million to N15million from Commissioners of Police (COP), State Mobile Police Commanders (SMPC) and Special Protection Unit Force Commanders (SPUFC) for favourable postings across the country.
That the IG-P makes up to N10billion monthly from oil giant companies, financial institutions include banks and high net worth private individuals who enjoy special protection from the security agency.
While the Police made their own case by accusing the serving Sen. Misau at the National House of Assembly for never followed strictly the provisions of the Police Act and Regulations in resigning from the Police Service.
Police alleged that the serving Sen. Misau deserted the Nigeria Police in 2010 upon his redeployment to the Niger State Command.
Comment:
It is a judicial misnomer for the police to raise an issue now against a retired officer, maybe because he has leveled an allegation against the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris.
The IG-P himself might be perceived as being culpable if the Senator committed an infraction or fraud before or during the process of his retirement and the IG-P, since assuming office as the IG-P, kept it until now that the senator has accused him of fraud. In a case like this, it may not be proper for the IG-P who now has a case with the Senator to raise another issue against the same Senator. The question the IG-P should answer is why did he not raise the issue before the Senator leveled his allegation? Since the Senator has made an allegation against the IG-P, it should be noted that the IG-P is a serving officer, and he is supposed to stay above board. If the Senator had discovered an anomaly against the IG-P in the process of doing his job, and the Senator being a representative of his constituency, and he is concerned as Nigeria lawmaker or a member of the National Assembly, his allegation should not be swept under the carpet. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission should investigate it just as they do to any other serving officer. •Dr. Ahamefule Nwachukwu (A retired Comptroller of Immigrations)
The question is: which of the allegations are the police investigating? Are they investigating the allegation by Senator Misau that the Inspector-General of Police is collecting bribe before posting commissioners and raking in N10bn monthly from corporate organisations in the country, or that the senator has not resigned from the Nigeria Police Force? If the police said Misau did not resign from the force before going to the senate, they could easily resolve that.
It cannot be the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission that would investigate that; it is not a financial crime. The police can investigate whether or not the Senator duly resigned; it is a matter of fact. But on the allegations against the IG, any of the other security agencies could probe that. The issue of collecting money is bribery, it is a financial crime, the EFCC can investigate this, but Misau has to put in writing as a petition. • Victor Giwa (A legal practitioner/Coordinator, Advocate for Peoples Rights and Justice)
The issue at hand is very sensitive and it needs proper caution towards its prosecution if truly justice is intended to be achieved at the end. The underlining factor in the matter at hand is in folds and they are as follows:
It becomes too clear to us that there has been a tussle as to personality and the powers that be in the Nigeria Police Force overtime. The allegations were made by a supposed former police officer who is now a Senator against the serving IG-P and members of the Police Service Commission. In other news, Senator Misau is the Chairman Senate Committee on Navy and to a large extent, we can say the man knows what he is talking about and how serious he thinks the issue is.
The IG-P also has set up a panel of enquiry to investigate the petition on allegations on bribe promotion exercise in the commission.
The panel is expected to make appropriate judicial action and other punishments as it is appropriate in line with the provisions of public service rules section 304 1 (j) (k) and other statutory enabling laws/acts.
However, the Senate is on recess and I believe that the Senator in question would raise it before the Senate and I know that another panel of inquiry would be inaugurated to see to the matter. We need to be patient and see the outcome of all these panels before there can be recommendations for prosecution.
Our laws do not exist for papers sake, but for implementation. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission can only take over if there is a due recommendation to the commission for the economic crimes of the allegation but cannot prosecute on whether or not a party has left the police force lawfully or unlawfully, that is for the Police Service Commission.
It is safe for recommendations to go to the EFCC, but not an overnight hijacking of the issue at hand. I would only urge the media to keep the public abreast of events as it unfolds. We can only monitor it through proper reportage. •Habeeb Whyte (A legal practitioner)
Statutorily, the EFCC is the agency saddled with the responsibility of investigating and the prosecuting economic and financial crimes related cases, while the ICPC on its part is empowered to investigate and prosecute public office holders who abused the office they occupy to enrich themselves.
From this trajectory and based on the allegations against the police by the distinguished Senator, one can unequivocally submit that the ICPC is the right agency to investigate the allegations and prosecute any indicted officer involved in the alleged institutional corruption that is endemic within the police. On ethical grounds, it will be wrong for the EFCC to investigate the police putting into consideration the fact that since inception, a police officer including the current acting chairman, have always been appointed to head the organisation. And quite a large number of officers and men seconded to the EFCC are from the police.
This fact alone, either admitted or not, will influence and affect the outcome of an independent and objective investigation against their colleagues within the police.
Also, the Senate Committee on Police should conduct a public hearing to allow members of the public submit memoranda and testify about what they know about these issues.
On the other hand, with regards to the issue of forgery, because the police are involved, it will be better for an independent government agency like the DSS to carry out the investigation. The DSS will present a more unbiased report of the outcome of its investigation than the police or the EFCC. How can a cockroach prove its innocence before a panel of seemingly unbiased cockerel? Mrs. Rosemary Osenum (An Abuja- based legal practitioner)
Yes. I think the allegations against the Inspector-General of Police are very serious and damaging. And if the President (Mohammadu Buhari) is serious and sincere about the war against corruption he should allow the EFCC to investigate.
Some will argue that the Acting Chairman of the EFCC is a subordinate officer to the IG and he would want to favour him but in the case of the ICPC, the body does not have affiliations with the Police and they are also empowered by law to investigate cases of corruption by public officers. Senator Misau had served in the police for some time and he seems to know what he is talking about.
Everything he said about the IGP is true, people have confirmed to me – like this issue of payment of money by banks, businesses, private individuals and politicians and the like.
One bank official confirmed to me that their bank pays N27m to the police every month for escort services and there are also private individuals who are not politicians, who are not government officials who still go about with escorts, the situation is very bad. Perhaps, the IGP inherited this from his predecessors, but he has also contributed to it. It is only the ICPC and the EFCC that can investigate these weighty allegations because the Police Service Commission has also been dragged into it. If this matter should be thoroughly investigated, neither the IGP nor the head of the Police Service Commission should remain on seat, they should be suspended like the Babachir Lawal and the DG NIA. •Alhaji Abubakar Tsav (A retired Commissioner of Police)
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