I’m no lawyer but I’m commonsensically literate. In other words, I not only went to school but the school also passed through me.
Many people have been saying a lot about Mr President and the Inspector General of Police. The gist is that the president publicly complained that he gave the chief crime officer an assignment and according to the president, the policeman did not fully obey him.
I’m referring to the Benue State issue.
I would have expected some of us to refer to the Bible of democracy which is the constitution. There we would have known whether the IGP was right or wrong. We would also have known whether or not the president should have acted without referring to anyone or body.
How does an inspector general of police get appointed or sacked?
Section 216(2) Before making any appointment to the office of the Inspector – General of Police or removing him from office, the President shall consult the Nigeria Police Council.
So, the fact that the president has not taken any action that we can see is no proof that something is not being done in the background.
By the way, if we consider the defence of the top cop, he could also cite the constitution.
Section 215(3) The President or such other Minister of the Government of the Federation as he may authorise in that behalf may give to the Inspector -General of Police such lawful directions with respect to the maintenance and security of public safety and public order as he may consider necessary, and the Inspector -General of Police shall comply with those directions or cause them to be complied with.
Reading through the last part of the above quoted subsection, I’m of the view that it wasn’t compulsory for the chief cop to be personally at the spot, as long as he had made the necessary arrangements.
Could we stop flogging a dead horse and concentrate on more salient issues? The crux of the matter is that we must find ways of stopping open grazing in these modern times. We are turning ourselves into nuisances before the rest of the world.
Let’s consider the invitation of the Kano State governor to all herdsmen to bring their cattle to Kano where there are provisions for them. We can then build an industry around beef processing in Kano.
031418
