JUST IN: IGP Summons Saraki, Melaye, Bruce For Leading “Miscreants, Thugs” In Act Of Public Disturbance

Nigeria’s Inspector General of Police IGP, has invited for interrogation the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, as well as Senator Dino Melaye and Senator Ben Bruce for allegedly leading “thugs and miscreants” to invade the Force Headquarters in Abuja.

The police said the trio were captured on camera trying to forcefully enter the Force Headquarters to damage and destroy Police equipment and Government properties.

BigPen Online recalls that Saraki and other top brass of the opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had stormed the police headquarters to register their protest over the outcome of the recently concluded Osun State Governorship election.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, and the national chairman of the party, Uche Secondus, were part of the protesters who also stormed the headquarter of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja.

But police spokesman, DCP Jimoh Moshood in a statement obtained by BigPen Online on Friday evening, said Saraki and others came with horde of miscreants and thugs to invade the police headquarters.

Police accused the trio of preventing motorists, road users and other members of the public from having access and passage on the highway thereby disturbing public peace and public safety and causing innocent people to scamper for safety during the protest match.

Moshood said that the trio were captured on camera to have been involved in the disturbance of public peace and public safety, unlawful blockade of Shehu Shagari way for several hours.

The statement said the trio were reportedly engaged in violent attack on Policemen posted to ensure security of the Force Headquarters, saying they were “pushing and hitting the Policemen to forcefully enter the Force Headquarters to cause damage to Police equipment and Government properties”.

The police spokesman said they are being invited to report themselves to the IGP Monitoring Unit at the Force Headquarters on Monday, 8th October, 2018 for investigation.

“Today at about 1330Hrs, unruly and violent protesters who are members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in their hundreds with thugs and miscreants inside several trucks and vehicles blocked the Shehu Shagari way in front of the Nigeria Police Force, Headquarters creating a gridlock of traffic on the highway and preventing motorists, road users.

Other members of the public were denied access and passage on Shehu Shagari way, the statement added, saying they protesters disturbed public peace and public safety and causing innocent people to scamper for safety.

The police also accused Saraki and others for leading “unruly/violent protesters surge and rushed violently on the Policemen posted to ensure safety of the Force Headquarters premises, pushing and hitting the Policemen to forcefully enter the Force Headquarters to cause damage to Police equipment and Government properties.

According to him, the Police team headed by a very Senior Police Officer despite the provocation, after issuing words of proclamation, warning this unruly PDP protesters who were chanting war songs of ”we no go gree o, we no go gree, we no go gree”, charged the Police personnel who used minimum force and dispersed them.

“Senator Dino Melaye, Senator Ben Murray-Bruce and others yet to be identified were recorded on Camera pushing Policemen to forcefully enter the Force Headquarters to damage and destroy Police equipment and Government properties”.

The statement said that while the violent protest was ongoing, “Senator Bukola Saraki who was at the scene of the attack in his car also captured on camera along with hundreds of miscreants and thugs in the acts of disturbance of public peace and public safety, unlawful blockade of Shehu Shagari way for several hours”.

“The Inspector General of Police has directed immediate investigation into this unprovoked and unwarranted attack on the personnel of the Nigeria Police Force and the Force Headquarters premises which is against the law and condemnable.

“The Force will do everything within the law to bring all perpetrators of this crime to justice, no matter how highly placed.

The statement however urged members of the public in the FCT to remain calm as the situation is under control.