OUR ROLE IN ATTACK ON SENATOR WHO CALLED FOR BUHARI’S IMPEACHMENT – NIGERIA POLICE
OUR ROLE IN ATTACK ON SENATOR WHO CALLED FOR BUHARI’S
IMPEACHMENT – NIGERIA POLICE
Nigerian Police
on patrol
Babatunde Kokumo, the commissioner of police in Edo
State, told NEWS REPORTERS on Sunday that the confrontation that broke out
during the arrival of Matthew Urhoghide at Benin Airport on Saturday would have
been worse.
“If the
police were not on ground to maintain law and order, the story would have been
different completely,” Mr Kokumo said by telephone Sunday night.
Mr
Urhoghide, a Peoples Democratic Party senator for Edo South Senatorial
District, was harassed shortly after he arrived at the Benin Airport by
suspected supporters of the All Progressives Congress.
A footage
of the encounter was published online by Independent Television (ITV) in Benin,
and it showed those who attacked Mr Urhoghide chanting pro-APC and anti-PDP
slogans.
The
encounter came two days after Mr Urhoghide called for the impeachment of
President Muhammadu Buhari for spending money to purchase new aircraft for the
Nigerian military without the approval of the National Assembly.
Mr Buhari
acknowledged in letters to the National Assembly he transferred the money
without authorisation, but proposed that the expenditure be retroactively
appropriated to meet constitutional requirement.
But many
lawmakers demanded explanation and stringent disciplinary measures against the
president for the possible breach of Constitution.
At the
resumed plenary Thursday, Mr Urhoghide raised the
motion for the lawmakers to open articles of impeachment
against the president.
“I want
this Senate to resolve that what the president did is procedurally wrong and a
violation of our Constitution,” Mr Urhoghide urged his colleagues. “It must be
condemned and of course, the consequences of section 143 of
our Constitution should be invoked.”
The matter
was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee for further investigation and
guidance. The committee was asked to submit its report by May 3.
Mr Urhoghide arrived in Edo State to spend his weekend, but his trip became a
subject of fierce display of partisanship for PDP and APC supporters. The
supporters clashed repeatedly before and after Mr Urhoghide arrived.
He was
confined to the VIP lounge of the airport until Governor Godwin Obaseki arrived
and the two walked side-by-side to enter waiting vehicle just outside the VIP
lounge.
But as the
two emerged, some violent elements within the crowd swooped on Mr Urhoghide and
prevented him from following the governor.
The
cameras concentrated on the governor, making it difficult to know what was
happening to the senator whom he had left behind.
The ITV
reporter said Mr Urhoghide’s cap was removed by the APC supporters who further
humiliated him before he was eventually rescued. A PDP youth leader in Edo
State was also brutalised, the station reported.
Mr Obaseki
waved to the crowd and entered his vehicle without looking for Mr Urhoghide.
When the two first exchanged pleasantries at the VIP lounge, Mr Obaseki could
be heard telling Mr Urhoghide: “You want to remove my president.”
Some PDP
supporters found the role Mr Obaseki played in the fracas highly suspicious,
with many accusing the APC governor of luring the PDP senator out of the VIP
lounge for the thugs to descend on him.
Mr
Urhoghide later explained his ordeal to ITV, describing those who attacked him
as ignorant of basic civics. He insisted that his call for the activation of
Section 143 of the Constitution against Mr Buhari was appropriate in the
circumstance, saying he would never be intimidated.
The
senator also denied calling for the president’s impeachment, explaining he only
called for the activation of Section 143. While he was not actually quoted as
using the impeachment term, the Section 143 of the
Constitution he called for is strictly about the process of
removing a president from office.
Crusoe Osagie, a spokesperson for Mr Obaseki, did not respond to THE REPORTERS’
requests seeking comments about his principal’s involvement in the controversy
Sunday night.
The
Vanguard reported that the APC youth accused Mr Urhoghide of embarking on a
hypocritical mission to impeach the president rather than concentrate on
initiatives that could improve the economic condition of his constituency.
“Edo South
people did not send you to impeach Buhari. Why did you and your cohorts not
impeach President Jonathan who looted the treasury as we have observed today?”
the paper quoted the protesters as saying.
Mr Kokumo
denied allegations that the police took sides with the APC supporters during
the clash, saying he and other officers deserve accolades for promptly waking
up to their duty.
“I was on
the ground because of the personality involved in the matter. Ordinarily, you
don’t expect the commissioner of police to find himself in the midst of
rampaging youth. But because of the personality involved, I had to abandon the
comfort of my office,” the commissioner said.
“We
deserve commendation, but not condemnation. We were able to contain the
situation. The situation was close to being riotous,” he added.
It was not
immediately clear whether suspects were taken into custody in connection with
the attack on the senator.