US designates B’Haram, Ansaru terrorist organisations

The United States has  formally designated  the fundamentalist Islamic militant groups,  Boko Haram and Ansaru,  as “Foreign Terrorist Organisations under Section 219 of its  Immigration and Nationality Act.

It also  classified them as  Designated Global Terrorists under section 1(b) of  Executive Order 13224.

The White House, in a statement on Wednesday, explained that the designation constituted only a tool in  a comprehensive approach by the Nigerian government  towards curbing the activities of the terror groups.

The statement   quoted Lisa Monaco, the   adviser on homeland security and counterterrorism  to President Barack  Obama, as  saying that the latest development had demonstrated the support of the White House for the war against the groups in Nigeria.

It  explained that with  their designation  as FTOs and  SDGTs,   financial institutions in the US had  been empowered to freeze the assets of Boko Haram and Ansaru.

The White House, according to Reuters and Sahara Reporters,   therefore encouraged the Federal Government “ to pursue a comprehensive counterterrorism approach that uses law enforcement tools effectively, creates economic opportunity, and ensures that human rights are protected and respected.”

It  also stated that the designation  would  allow  the US  and  its  law enforcement partners    to investigate and prosecute terror  suspects associated with Boko Haram and Ansaru.

The statement reads in part,  “These designations are an important and appropriate step, but only one tool in what must be a comprehensive approach by the Nigerian government to counter these groups through a combination of law enforcement, political, and development efforts, as well as military engagement, to help root out violent extremism while also addressing the legitimate concerns of the people of Northern Nigeria.

“All of our assistance to Nigeria stresses the importance of protecting civilians and ensuring that human rights are respected.  That assistance and these designations demonstrate the U.S. support for the Nigerian people’s fight against Boko Haram and Ansaru.

“By cutting these terrorist organisations off from U.S  financial institutions and enabling banks to freeze assets held in the US, these designations demonstrate our strong support for Nigeria’s fight against terrorism.

 “Boko Haram has been conducting an ongoing and brutal campaign against Nigerian military, government, and civilian targets.

“Among its most lethal attacks, Boko Haram carried out indiscriminate attacks in Benisheikh   in September 2013 that killed more than 160 innocent civilians, including women and children.  Boko Haram has also conducted attacks against international targets, including a suicide bombing of the United Nations building in Abuja on August 26, 2011, that killed 21 people and injured dozens more, many of them aid workers supporting development projects across Nigeria.”

The White House statement  described Boko Haram as a militant group with links to al-Qae’ida in the Islamic Maghreb that is responsible for thousands of deaths in North-East and central Nigeria over the   years, including targeted killings of civilians.

Ansaru is a Boko Haram splinter faction that earlier in 2013 kidnapped and executed seven international construction workers.

Ansaru’s attacks have focused on  the  military and Western targets.  In November 2012, the group attacked   a police station in Abuja, killing   policemen    and freeing detained terror suspects from prison.

Also in January 2013, Ansaru   ambushed a convoy of  peacekeepers, killing some of them. It     also conducted several kidnappings of foreigners.

The US  had on June 21, 2012  declared   the leader of   Boko Haram , Abubakar Shekau,  a SDGT   and placed a $7m bounty on his head.

The Federal Government, through the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke (SAN), said it welcomed   the US decision.

Adoke,  in an interview with journalists in Abuja on Wednesday night,  said, ““The US stance is a welcome development; we salute the US Government for partnering with  us to root out terrorism.

“This step will assist Nigeria to deal with these renegades. It will also help in strengthening the proscription of Boko Haram by the government.

“We urge other super powers to emulate the US government to check terrorism in any part of the world. A threat to any nation by   insurgents is a threat to global peace.”

The Director of Defence Information, Brig. Gen Chris Olukolade, in an interview with one of our correspondents, said   the US    action  would enhance collaborative efforts geared towards tackling the Boko Haram insurgency.

Olukolade  said,  “It is most welcome and we hope it would enhance more collaboration to tackle the evil. It will  enhance the required collaboration  globally.

“It will  enhance the support that we expect everywhere from all citizens both in Nigeria and across the world.”

Also,  the Christian Association of Nigeria said the development was  a vindication of its earlier position  on the sect.

The Public Relations Officer of CAN in the 19 Northern States and Abuja, Mr. Sunny Oibe,  said, “We saw it coming. We  thank God that at last, the US  government has realised it.

“With this  , the position of CAN has been justified that Boko Haram is a terrorist organisation because next to Al-Qaida, Boko Haram kill more human beings than every other terrorist organisation in the world.”

source: PUNCH

APC faults 22-hour ‘curfew’ for Anambra poll

The All Progressives Congress has faulted the Independent National Electoral Commission for declaring a 22-hour restriction on movement from midnight on Friday, to 10pm on Saturday for the Anambra State governorship poll.

The party wondered why such an “extended curfew should be imposed because of an isolated election.”

In a statement on Wednesday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said even duringgeneral elections, people were allowed to move around freely from 4pm on election day.

APC said, “Election is not a war, but a celebration of democracy. Declaring a 22-hour curfew for an election in only one state raises serious questions: What is INEC hiding? Is the curfew meant to give riggers enough time to write and collate their cooked-up results? Are elections and free movement of people incompatible? Why does INEC need a 22-hour curfew to conduct a ‘peaceful and successful’ election in one state? Where in the world is a 22-hour curfew imposed during an
election?

”In any case, Anambra does not have the kind of terrain or riverine communities that will justify waiting for hours for election results to be taken from polling units to the collation centre, hence there is no reason to turn Anambra into a ghost state just to hold a governorship election.

”We therefore call on INEC to reconsider this overstretched curfew if it has no underlying motive for declaring it in the first instance. After all, information at our disposal has it that some decent INEC officials have rejected being part of the Anambra election because they do not want to be tainted by the shenanigans of some of their unscrupulous colleagues who are colluding with do-or-die politicians for ‘thirty pieces of silver’.”

MSSNLAGOS PRESS RELEASE ON HIJAB COURT CASE ADJOURNMENT

Again, Lagos govt seeks further adjournment on Hijab case, to come up on December 19. Justice G.M Onyeabo of the Ikeja High Court has adjourned the Lagos Hijab case to December 19, 2013. The case was formerly being handled by Justice Joseph Oyewole before it was transferred to Onyeabo.

At the resumed hearing today, counsel to the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria, Lagos State Area Unit, Barrister Adetola Kasim (SAN), asked the court to set down the case for hearing since the Lagos State Government had not responded to a proposal for terms of settlement sent since July, 2013.

But counsel to the State Government, Samuel Ajanaku, pleaded for further adjournment claiming that bureaucratic bottlenecks in the civil service had prevented the government from responding on time.

He explained that the terms are currently at the office of the governor saying more time should be given.

However, Adetola urged the judge to let the case proceed as it is of high public interest which cannot wait any longer.

Thereafter, Justice Onyeabo granted the application and adjourned the case till December 19, 2013.

Speaking shortly after, the Naibul Amir (Vice President) of Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria, Lagos State Area Unit Saheed Ashafa, described the attitude of the state government as unfortunate.

He said the government was only whiling away time to execute a plan that is not yet known to the people.

“It is obvious that the state government is using delay tactics. From the first day in court they had told the court that they want to settle out of court and this is about the third time and they are still saying the same thing.

“This is portraying that they are not interested in resolving the matter to the favour of the law but just to while away time so that they can probably do what we don’t know yet,” he said.

Ashafa said no matter how the government tries to delay the case, the MSSN Lagos State Area Unit, would not relent until it is pursued to a logical end.

Also speaking, General Secretary of the society, Tajudeen Balogun, lamented that while the state government continues to seek endless adjournments in the case, some school principals persist in harassing and victimising Muslim students using Hijab in secondary schools.

The MSSN had taken the case to court after series of harassment on Muslim students wearing the hijab by secondary school principals in Lagos state.

The case first came up on May 27, 2013 but was adjourned till July 10 after the state government said it had no defence and sought for adjournment.

It was further adjourned till October 28 as judges in Lagos State were attending a conference.

The case could not come up again as Justice Oyewole who was formerly handling the case was transferred to another division.

Signed:
Idris Qasim
Public Relations Officer
MSSN, Lagos State Area Unit

ASUU leaders chase Kogi gov away from hospital

Angry leaders of the Academic Staff Union of Universities allegedly chased away the Governor of Kogi State, Captain Idris Wada (retd.) from the emergency ward of the  Lokoja General Hospital on Tuesday.

Wada had gone to the hospital  to visit their  injured colleague, Dr. Ngozi Ilo,   and commiserate with them over the death of their  former President, Prof. Festus Iyayi,   in an accident involving his convoy  and an ASUU vehicle on Tuesday.

The  Chairman, University of Benin chapter  of ASUU, Dr. Anthony Monye-Emina; and the Benin Zonal Coordinator, Dr. Sunny Iyalo, had minor injuries and were therefore not admitted into the hospital.

The   ASUU leaders, including the National President, Dr. Biodun Ogunyemi;  the Ibadan Zonal Coordinator, Dr. Nassir Adesola; the Chairman, Lagos State University chapter of the union, Dr. Adekunle Idris;    Monye-Emina;   Iyalo  and lecturers from the Federal University Lokoja however sent the governor away from the hospital’s emergency ward.

Their grouse was Wada’s  late response to the accident and the uncaring attitude he allegedly displayed towards the union leaders  involved in the accident.

They also accused him of trying to make a political gain out of their misfortune.

Idris, who confirmed that  Wada was chased out of the  emergency ward, said,    “We are surprised that a state governor could resort to telling lies because contrary to the claim by his spokesperson that he showed care towards our colleagues, he did not.

“Somebody that did not stop after his convoy killed our leader; somebody that did not come to the hospital until some minutes to 5pm(on Tuesday) after the accident that happened around 11am could not be said to be caring.

“That was why we chased him out of the emergency ward of the hospital and we also prevented him from seeing Prof. Iyayi’s corpse in the mortuary.

“We are not happy with the fact that he came very late to the hospital and the fact that when he came, his press crew attempted to take photograph and video record of Dr. Ilo, who is our national welfare  secretary. We stopped them because that was  the  height of insensitivity.

“Somebody that could not provide us with an ambulance cannot be said to be caring. We had to call UNIBEN for an ambulance that took Ilo to the UNIBEN Teaching Hospital while our colleagues from the Federal University, Lokoja, with the assistance of the vice-chancellor, gave us the ambulance that was used to convey the remains of Prof. Iyayi to Benin.”

Idris added that though Wada  left the hospital “like a gentleman,”  some of  his overzealous  security aides tried  to be naughty.

He said, “Some of the policemen  that followed him to the hospital wanted to be naughty but we lectured them. The hospital workers and the residents of Lokoja who witnessed how we chased the governor  away were happy.”

Also, Adesola expressed dismay at  the efforts  made by the governor to rewrite the incident.

He said, “It was actually the last of the governor’s convoy that veered off the road and ran into a  vehicle that was conveying Iyayi and others.

“When the governor’s convoy came  with   noise and harassment, everyone on the road moved  to the side  of the road for them to pass  but  unfortunately, the governor’s aide  has told the world that an  ASUU  vehicle was avoiding a trailer and ran into  their escort vehicle.

“What manner of reckless lying is that? The front  of the ASUU bus remains  intact except for the windscreen that broke. Iyayi was sitting at the back of the bus and the  escort van  ran into it.

The most annoying part is  that the incident occurred around 11am and the governor did not even visit the hospital until around 5pm.

“He  came with a large  number of pressmen and security aides  and was attempting to make some political capital out of our misfortune.

“We actually had to chase him away from the emergency ward where our welfare secretary was still receiving treatment .”

But Jacob Edi, the Special Adviser, Media and Strategy to  Wada,  claimed that the ASUU leaders did not chase his boss away from the hospital.

Edi, who in a telephone interview  with one of our correspondents, insisted that Wada  was not indifferent to the plight  of the   accident victims, however, stated that the union officials were not  friendly.

He said, “When the governor went  to the hospital, the ASUU people   had a kind of adverse reaction to the governor.    But they did not chase away the governor. Nobody chased away anybody.”

The governor’s spokesman  added that the state government would not want to be involved in controversy over  the death of the former ASUU president.

He stated that Wada was pained by  the accident and had been sympathising with the bereaved families  and  the survivors.

It was however not only the ASUU leaders that   lambasted  the governor  over  the accident, the Nigeria Labour Congress, a former President of the Trade Union Congress, Mr. Peter Esele and an ex-Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Mr. Abubakar Tsav, also  did.

They  described Wada’s convoy as reckless and   demanded the prosecution of the  driver  of the escort vehicle that   caused the accident on the Lokoja-Abuja Road.

The NLC,  in a statement in Abuja by its National President, Mr. Abdulwahed Omar, described the death of Iyayi as avoidable.

It  also blamed the Federal Government for its neglect of  the road.

The NLC said its  position  was  that the federal   and   Kogi State governments  were responsible for   Iyayi’s death.

It  said that 10 years after the contract for the rehabilation of the  Lokoja-Abuja Road was awarded,  it  had been turned to a death trap.

The NLC  said,  “Iyayi’s death leaves a sour taste in the mouth and it is totally avoidable. It is blameable, lawlessness/impunity on the part of the Kogi State governor, who is fast acquiring for himself an accident-prone reputation.

The congress therefore advised  “siren-blowing and terror-dealing convoys” to  be conscious of other road users.

It  called on the Federal Roads Safety Corps and the Nigeria Police to ensure that those behind the  accident  were brought to justice.

Esele and Tsav    urged the relevant authorities to ensure that the convoy driver involved in the accident was prosecuted.

They spoke in different telephone interviews with   our correspondents.

According to them, Wada has a responsibility to caution his drivers as his convoy has become reputed for recklessness.

Esele recalled that the convoy of the governor was involved in  an  accident which resulted in the death of  Wada’s Aide de Camp and in which Wada was also injured.

Tsav,  who described the death of the former ASUU leader as unfortunate, called on President Goodluck Jonathan to meet the demands of ASUU.

This, he said, would be  in appreciation of the fact that Iyayi died while contributing to the development of university education in the country.

Tsav said that   accidents occurred in Kogi State not because the roads in Kogi were the worst but because the drivers in the governor’s convoy were not cautious.

He said that the roads were not meant only for the political office holders but   for  all Nigerians.

He said, “The convoy of Wada is known for being reckless; this is not the first time this is happening. It does not mean that the worst roads are in Kogi State.

 “I want to appeal to him to caution his drivers, they are reckless, he should caution them to be cautious on the roads, the roads belong  to every Nigerian.”

SOURCE: PUNCH

Iyayi’s death: FRSC blames Kogi gov for fatal crash

The Kogi Sector Command of the Federal Road Safety Commission has blamed the auto crash that led to the death, on Tuesday, of Prof. Festus Iyayi, on wrongful overtaking by a vehicle in the convoy of Kogi state governor, Idris Wada.

The News Agency of Nigeria quoted the Kogi State Sector Commander of the FRSC, Olakunle Motajo, as saying preliminary report by his commission suggested the accident was caused by a Toyota Hilux bus in Wada’s convoy.

The vehicle, Motajo said, made “wrongful overtaking”, ramming into another Toyota Hiace bus belonging to the UNIBEN ASUU chapter,  in which Iyayi and two others were travelling in the opposite direction.

Some residents of Banda community, who witnessed the accident, said the two vehicles collided and the ASUU bus somersaulted three times before hitting a big tree in the bush.

Mr. Iyayi died instantly while two others, including a woman, who sustained fracture in her left arm, were injured. The driver of the bus escaped unhurt, Motajo said.

source: PUNCH

ASUU Postpones NEC Meeting Over Iyayi’s Death

BY OYEDOTUN QUDUS

The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has postponed its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, which was supposed to hold today, due to the loss of one of the prominent members of the union, Professor Festus Iyayi, who died in an auto crash on Lokoja-Abuja Expressway, on his way to the Kano, yesterday, for the union’s meeting.

The decision to call off or continue the four months old strike embarked upon by the University lecturers was expected to be made at the meeting which would have held today but for Iyayi’s death.

The union called for the meeting after fresh negotiations with the president, where the government was said to have shown commitment to ending the strike by improving on earlier offers.

The meeting will now hold on date to be communicated to members later.

SOURCE: INFORMATION NG

FG, HONOR THE AGREEMENT WITH ASUU---QASIM BADRUDEEN

BY OYEDOTUN QUDUS

A youth based religious organisation,Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria, Lagos State Area Unit, has called on the federal government to honour the agreement it entered into with the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, so that students will resume academic activities

The Amir of the society, Qasim Badrudeen who made the call today at its ongoing Annual Conference at the University of Lagos Main Auditorium, during his speech, urged the federal government to stop playing politics with the issue as it will amount to mortgaging the future of the country

He however called on the lecturers to justify whatever fund that will  be injected into the system by dilligently training the students to the best of their abilities

Pakistani Muslims Form Human Chain To Protect Christians During Mass (PHOTOS)

Hand in hand as many as 200-300 people formed a human chain outside the St Anthony’s Church adjacent to the District Police Lines at the Empress Road, in a show of solidarity with the victims of the Peshawar church attack two weeks back, which resulted in over a 100 deaths. The twin suicide attack on All Saints church occurred after Sunday mass ended and is believed to be the country’s deadliest attack on Christians.

Tukur has been dismissed from PDP -New PDP

BY: OYEDOTUN QUDUS

The New Peoples Peoples Democratic Party has called for the resignation of the National Chairman of the party, Dr. Bamanga Tukur on the grounds that he has been dismissed from the party.

The faction of the ruling party, which is being led by a former Acting National  Chairman of the party, Alhaji Kawu Baraje, said that Tukur was dismissed from the party in 2006.

It said that since then, there was no record to show that the former Governor of old Gongola State had been recalled or granted waiver by the party’s leadership.

Tukur has however frowned at the accusation, saying it is one of the pranks of the aggrieved group to get him out of office.

He said none of those making the allegation is in possession of any document to show that he was actually excommunicated by the party.

But the New PDP in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Chukwuemeka Eze in Abuja on Sunday, insisted that Tukur and nine other members of the party were expelled from the party 13 years ago for anti-party activities.

Students strip in protest over dress code at Kipasvor University in Hungary

BY: OYEDOTUN QUDUS

stripped off in class to protest at a university’s strict new dress code.

Art undergraduates at Kaposvar University in southern Hungary took action after the clothes crackdown was imposed on October 1.

Under the new rules university rector Ferenc Szavai told women to avoid short skirts and thongs, while men have been prohibited from wearing shorts.

Strong perfume, over-use of make-up and “blatant use” of accessories is also banned.

There is expected to be a further demonstration against the new rules on October 7.

US raids Somalia, Libya Towns

WASHINGTON   – US forces struck two militant targets in Africa, snatching a top Al-Qaeda suspect from the streets of Tripoli and launching a pre-dawn raid against a Shebab leader’s home in Somalia.

Libyan authorities on Sunday demanded an explanation about the “kidnap” of one of the “Libyan citizens” wanted by Washington, which US authorities identified as Abu Anas al-Libi, a long-sought Al-Qaeda operative indicted in the 1998 bombings of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

A separate raid in the southern Somali port of Barawe Saturday failed to capture the Shebab leader and it was unclear whether he had been killed, but a US official said several members of the Al-Qaeda-linked group had been slain.

The raid was reportedly “prompted” by the deadly militant siege on a Nairobi shopping mall last month.

The operation in Libya, also Saturday, appeared to be a success.

“As the result of a US counterterrorism operation, Abu Anas al-Libi is currently lawfully detained by the US military in a secure location outside of Libya,” Pentagon spokesman George Little said in a statement.

A source close to Libi told AFP he was snatched by armed men in Tripoli.

Libi, who was on the FBI’s most wanted list with a $5 million reward, was indicted in US federal court in New York for allegedly playing a key role in the east Africa bombings.

The attacks left more than 200 people dead.

His capture ended a 15-year manhunt for Libi, a key Al-Qaeda operative born under the name Nazih Abdul Hamed Al-Raghie.

It also paved the way for Libi, 49, to be brought to the United States to face trial.

“We hope that this makes clear that the United States of America will never stop in its effort to hold those accountable who conduct acts of terror,” said Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday, speaking from the Indonesian island of Bali.

The action should also make clear that “those members of Al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations literally can run, but they can’t hide,” said Kerry, speaking during a break from meetings of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.

The US raid took place in broad daylight with the knowledge of the Libyan government, a US official told CNN.

Libyan security services said they were unaware of any kidnapping or arrest of the man.

“The Libyan government has been following the reports of the kidnap of one of the Libyan citizens wanted by the authorities in the United States,” read a government statement said.

“As soon as it heard the reports, the Libyan government contacted the US authorities to demand an explanation.”

Norman Benotman with the Quiliam Foundation, a London-based self-described “counter-extremism think tank,” told CNN that he had direct contact with Libi’s family.

“After he was at prayer in the morning, I think 6:00 am local time, on his way back to his home … a special unit there, about ten people in three cars … they were waiting for him and just snatched him within a few seconds, and he even failed to reach his gun,” Benotman told CNN.

“An old nightmare hunted him down,” said Benotman.

According to the US indictment, Libi and other Al-Qaeda members discussed attacking the US Embassy in Nairobi as early as 1993, and even took pictures of the mission.

In 1994, Libi allegedly drew up plans to attack the mission and a building that housed the United States Agency for International Development, as well as British, French and Israeli targets.

A US official said the operation in Somalia sought to capture a “high-value” Shebab leader, and that no US personnel were injured or killed.

The operation marked the most significant US assault in Somalia since commandos killed key Al-Qaeda operative Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan in the same area four years ago.

It followed an attack by Shebab gunmen last month on the upscale Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi that left 67 people dead during a four-day siege.

“US personnel took all necessary precautions to avoid civilian casualties in this operation and disengaged after inflicting some Shebab casualties,” the official said.

Declining to identify the people who died, the official said that “even in these extreme operational circumstances, the US military is very cautious to minimize civilian casualties.”

Leaders of the Shebab in Barawe, one of the few ports left in the hands of the insurgents, said commandos attacked from the sea and the air, but failed in their attempt to storm a house belonging to a senior commander.

The SEAL team approached and fired on the unidentified target’s seaside villa by sea, according to The New York Times.

Although the Shebab leader was believed to have been killed during the assault, the SEALs had to withdraw before they could confirm the kill, a senior US official told the newspaper.

“The Barawe raid was planned a week and a half ago,” a US security official told the Times.

“It was prompted by the Westgate attack.”

A senior Somali government official told the newspaper that “the attack was carried out by the American forces and the Somali government was pre-informed about the attack.”

Shebab spokesman Abdulaziz Abu Musab told AFP that commandos had stormed the beach by boat, but blamed Britain and Turkey.

“The bungled operation was carried out by white people, who came with two small boats from a larger ship out at sea… one Shebab guard was killed, but reinforcements soon came and the foreigners fled,” he said.

“Where the foreigners had been, afterwards we saw lots of blood, so maybe we wounded some.”

Kenya names Westgate mall suspects; Leithwaite not listed

By: OYEDOTUN QUDUS

As Kenya named four men said to have been involved in the deadly Westgate shopping mall raid, CCTV footage has been aired showing attackers on the prowl in what looks like a storeroom and a supermarket.

At least 67 people died in the assault two weeks ago. A further 39 are missing, according to the Red Cross. Al Qaeda-linked group al Shabaab says it carried out the attack in revenge for Kenya’s military campaign in Somalia.

Named by Kenya as Sudanese Abu Baara al-Sudani, Omar Nabhan, a Kenyan of Arab origin, Somali Khattab al-Kene and Umayr, whose nationality is unknown, the four are all said to have died in the standoff.

There was no mention of a woman, despite speculation about Briton Samantha Lewthwaite, the widow of one of the London suicide bombers of 2005.

It is still unclear if truly Samantha Leithwaite is connected to the terror attack.

Meanwhile, amid militant reports that one of their bases in Somalia had been raided by Western forces, any link with the mall attack in Nairobi was unclear.

APC accuses Jonathan of using Rivers crisis to test-run fascism

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused the presidency of using Rivers State as a testing ground for creeping fascism ahead of the 2015 elections, saying it is imperative for all Nigerians to pay a close attention to the apparently-instigated ugly developments in the state.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said it is raising the alarm because, as the saying goes, all it takes for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing.

The party decried the worsening impunity and the violation of constitutional provisions, including the freedom of association
and freedom of movement, in the state against those perceived to be against the President.

Patience, Amaechi and Jonathan

”The arrowhead of these grave acts is none other than the Rivers Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, a malleable police officer who has put himself above the laws of the land and is now, undoubtedly, the Alternate Inspector-General of Police, who can neither be queried nor redeployed because his puppeteers are in the Aso Rock,” APC said.

”Imagine every State Police Commissioner in Nigeria behaving like Alternate IGP Mbu, who neither respects nor takes orders
from the man constitutionally saddled with ensuring security in his state. Imagine every State Police Commissioner having the
powers to determine who can move around and where, or who can assembly and where, just like Alternate IGP Mbu?

”While we may think this madness is restricted only to Rivers State, the danger is that if those behind the Rivers crisis can
get away with their impunity, what prevents them from extending it to other states? What prevents them from raising lick-spittle
police officers like Mbu to the rarefied ranks of Alternate IGPs where they take orders only from their masters? What will be the implication for the 2015 elections if men like Mbu take charge of all states? These are the questions that should agitate the minds of all Nigerians as the Rivers crisis continues unabated. All that is needed for despotism to reign in our clime is for more and more states to have men like Mbu as Police Commissioners,” it said.

APC said it decided to take the issue to the court of Nigerians because it is apparent that even the system of checks and balances set up by the country’s Constitution is not enough, hence a resolution of the National Assembly demanding the redeployment of Mbu has been shredded by the powers that be, the puppeteers of the Rivers crisis.

”When the resolutions of the National Assembly, where the true representatives of the people hold sway, are no longer worth the paper on which they are written, something is definitely wrong,” the party said.

It wondered what else Alternate IGP Mbu will do before he is redeployed from Rivers, where his main assignment seems to be to provide security only for the pro-Jonathan, pro-First Lady and pro-Wike elements while curtailing the Constitutionally-guaranteed rights of all other citizens in the state.

”Mbu’s police have barred the man elected to run Rivers State from accessing a road to his official residence, after launching verbal tirades at the State Chief Executive; Mbu’s police have dispersed citizens whose only offence is that they dared to gather for the purpose of collecting their appointment letters; Mbu’s police have taken it upon themselves to determine who can visit the state, while using tear-gas to ward off those they feel should not visit, whether or not they are State Governors, House of Assembly Speakers or Central Bank of Nigeria officials on assignment. Mbu’s police determine where and when students can move around.

”If Mbu’s reign of the jungle and President Jonathan’s testing of fascism are allowed to continue in Rivers State, it is only a matter of time before the entire country will become their playground, with deadly consequences for all. It is time to stop the madness in Rivers State, where the Chief Security Officer has been put in a position where he is fearful for his own life,” APC said.

source: Vanguards NG