The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Mbu Joseph Mbu

  • PSC retires Mbu, 20 others

    PSC retires Mbu, 20 others

    The Police Service Commission (PSC) on Friday approved the retirement of former Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, Mbu Joseph Mbu, and 20 other Assistant Inspectors General of Police (AIG).

    The commission said the retired AIGS were senior in hierarchy to the Acting Inspector General of Police, Idris Ibrahim, before his appointment.

    The Head of Press and Public Relations Unit of the PSC, Ikechukwu Ani, announced the police officers’ retirement in a statement on Friday.

    Other retired AIGs are – Bala A. Hassan, Yahaya Garba Ardo, Irmiya F. Yarima, Danladi Y. Mshebwala, Tambari Y. Mohammed, Bala Magaji Nasarawa, MUsa Abdulsalam, Adisa Bolanta and Mohammed J. Gana.

    Umaru Abubakar Manko, Lawal Tanko, Olufemi A. Adenaike, Johson A. Ogunsakin, Adenrele T. Shinaba, James O. Caulcrick, Olufefemi David Ogumbayode, Edgar T. Nanakumo, Kalafite H. Adeyemi, Patrick D. Dokumor, and Sabo Ibrahim Ringim completed the list.

    The Chairman of the Commission, Mike Okiro, congratulated the affected officers for their meritorious service to the nation and wished them well in their new endeavours.

     

  • Mbu: The Burden of Denial

    Mbu: The Burden of Denial

    Mbu Joseph Mbu, the Assistant Inspector General of Police, AIG, in charge of Zone 2 comprising Lagos and Ogun police commands, is no stranger to controversy. In fact, he is very much qualified to be referred to as Mr. Controversy because it is as if everything about him revolves around controversy. Although it is this controversial nature that seems to stand him out among his professional colleagues, it also comes with a lot of temperature which at times, may be quite excruciating.

    Mbu is currently enmeshed in a tempestuous storm caused, perhaps, by his reckless use of the tongue. He had been rightly or wrongly quoted in the media to have told his men at the Ogun State Police Command Headquarters, Eleweran, Abeokuta, during his maiden visit to the command that: “If one of my men is killed, I shall kill 20 of them, but don’t shoot first. If they shoot you, shoot back in self-defence. Anybody who fires you, fire him back in self-defence.” Mbu was also quoted as having said that there is no big deal in the number of people policemen under his command can kill in self-defence. According to Mbu, “Since policemen are also human beings, they should be ready to take revenge on any violent group(s) that might attack them or other innocent citizens.”

    As the controversy raged, some journalists again approached Mbu, who led policemen to provide security for President Goodluck Jonathan’s recent visit to Lagos, to clarify the controversial statement credited to him. Mbu said the media account was mischievous and contrary to what he actually said in Abeokuta. Curiously, however, he restated the media account he had tried to debunk. He said, “I still stand by what I said. And what I said is very clear: that if any violent group attacks my policemen, my policemen should attack them violently. If any violent group attacks a law-abiding citizen in a bid to cause injury or cause harm, the police should repel and save that law-abiding citizen because we have the powers to do so… The number I kill is immaterial because a policeman is also a human being.”

    When asked if his strategy of fire-for-fire is the best way to handle the situation, Mbu answered: “Which other way do you think you can handle it? You will shoot at the police. Is it not when the person is alive that he is coming to give evidence? How will somebody who is violently attacking others be stopped? Are you going to use your hands? You must repel him using a stronger force.”

    As usual, these statements went viral in the media. Many notable Nigerians also kicked against the statements. Others went to the extent of calling for Mbu’s head. Right now, there is a subsisting court case in which the plaintiff is asking the court to declare Mbu unfit to be a police officer. Last week, Gbenga Adeoye, a Chief Superintendent of Police and Zonal Public Relations Officer for Zone 2, Lagos, tried to bail out Mbu from this mess. In a series of advertorials in some newspapers titled: “What Mbu said in Ogun State,” Adeoye tried hard to extricate his boss from the web of controversy by reproducing what transpired between Mbu and the newsmen and placing them before the court of public opinion saying “let Nigerians judge.”

    However, one curious aspect of the question-and-answer session was where Mbu was quoted as saying… “Anybody found with arms will be arrested by the police. Who we cannot arrest, we will recover arms by force. And during this election, no politician and their followers should shoot at any policeman. If you shoot at any policeman, my policemen will shoot back in self defence.” Mbu’s defence, coming rather late in the day, shows that, except for the non-mention of the number of people any policeman that is attacked could mow down, there is no significant difference with what he was initially quoted as saying in Abeokuta and which he somehow upheld at another forum when he could have easily corrected the earlier misconception. It makes the whole thing look more like an afterthought.

    Mbu’s travail reminded me of an interview I conducted with the late legal icon, Chief Gani Fawehinmi in the company of two other senior editors – Adegbenro Adebanjo and Bola Adewole- for TELL Magazine many years ago. Fawehinmi had spoken on tape during the interview conducted in his chambers at Anthony Village in Lagos. By the time it was published the following Monday, a furious Fawehinmi put a call through to the office, threatening fire and brimstone. He also announced the severance of any relationship that had existed between him and the magazine. But because the management of the magazine had tremendous respect for him, we were simply asked to proceed to his office to conduct another interview using the same questions in order to afford him the opportunity to put the record straight. He grudgingly accepted.

    We went back to the chambers for the interview. By the time the thing was transcribed once more, even with some slight modifications in his choice of words, it was discovered that he had actually said the same things all over again. The following week, we published the new version and people could not see the difference between the two interviews. At any rate, that rested the case.

    Though he brooks no nonsense, those who knew Mbu when he was the CP in charge of the Mobile Police Unit at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, can attest to his dedication to duty. While his headship of MOPOL lasted, there were no complaints about his work ethics nor did anyone accuse him of professional misconduct. Perhaps, his no-nonsense posture started unfolding when he was posted to Oyo State as CP. There, he found out that the state’s security outfit had 90 percent police components and a sprinkle of military personnel. But the command and administrative structures were manned solely by the military. He protested but the governor was adamant. He simply withdrew his men and that grounded the outfit until the anomaly was redressed.

    As CP Rivers, Mbu and Rotimi Amaechi, the governor of the state, operated a cat and mouse relationship, simply because he did not like the way the governor was channeling official communications to him through his ADC, a Deputy Superintendent of Police.  At a point, the two men resorted to throwing verbal punches at each other until Mbu was redeployed to Abuja, first as CP, FCT, and later promoted AIG and stationed at Zone 7, Abuja. It was when he was CP, FCT that he attempted to dislodge the BringBackOurGirls campaigners before higher authorities and subsequently, the court, overruled him.

    In January this year, Mbu was redeployed to Lagos as AIG Zone 2. On his arrival, he was accosted by hordes of reporters and paparazzi who wanted a word or two from him as he took over his new command. Not a man to shy away from talking to newsmen, Mbu said he was in Lagos for purely police duties and promised a hard time for troublemakers during his tenure. His speech elicited a lot of reactions due to the fact that people already had pre-conceptions about him.

    For too long, Mbu has allowed himself to be tied to the apron string of controversy which may not augur well for his career at the end of the day. In his more than 30 years in the police, he has served meritoriously wherever he has worked. He is a policeman to the core. He should talk less and concentrate more on discharging his duty without fear or favour as required by the law. Remember the words of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the late 32nd President of the United States of America who, in his speech at Washington DC, on January 8, 1936, said, inter alia: “A government, any institution personified by any executive, can be no better than the public opinion that sustains him.” And like I have always advised my friends: “Don’t be carried away by what people say in your presence, but be wary about what they will discuss in your absence.”

  • Police redeploy Mbu to Lagos, Ogun

    Police redeploy Mbu to Lagos, Ogun

    CONTROVERSIAL police officer Mbu Joseph Mbu got a new posting yesterday.

    Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) Mbu was deployed to Lagos from Abuja to take charge of the Zone 2 Command. There are two states –Lagos and Ogun – covered by the command, with its headquarters in Onikan on Lagos Island.

    Mbu will replace Umaru  Manko, a former Lagos State Police Commissioner who has been moved to the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, near Jos.

    Inspector General of Police (IG) Suleiman Abba announced Mbu’s deployment along with 27 other senior officers.

    A statement by force spokesman Emmanuel Ojukwu said Abba charged the officers to be more service-oriented in the discharge of their constitutional responsibilities and urged the public to also partner closely with the force in its determination to ensure improved safety and security.

    The other officers, who are expected to move immediately are: Tambari Y. Muhammed, Mohammed Abubakar, Aderenle Shinaba, Musa A. Daura, Johnson A Ogunsakin, Patrick D. Dokumor, Christopher T. Dega, Usman Akila Gwarry and Bala A Haassan.

    Others are: Ikemefuna R. Okoye, Mohammed J. Gana, Sule Mamman, Adisa B. Bolanta, Edgar Tam Nanakumo, Sabo Ringim Ibrahim, Wilfred Eje Obute, Kalafite Helen Adeyemi, Ibrahim Maishanu, Jubrin Olawale Adeniji, Lawal Tanko, Ballah Magaji Nasarawa, Yahaya Garba Ardo, Buhari Tanko, Olufemi A. Adenaike, Umaru Abubakar Manko, Irimiya F. Yerima and Mark Adamu Idakwo.

    The Police Service Commission has also approved the promotion of Commissioner of Police, Adenike Fehintola Abuwa to AIG.

    Mbu’s tenure as Rivers State Police commissioner was turbulent. When he was transferred to Abuja before his promotion to AIG, he also continued in the same fashion. An AIT reporter, Amaechi Anakwe, who described him as “controversial” on a television programme was arrested and detained for almost 24 hours. He was eventually taken to court but no charges were pressed. There was outrage as Mbu’s action was interpreted as an abridgement of freedom of speech.

    He also confronted the BringBackOurGirls campaigner pushing for the freedom of the abducted Chibok girls.

    Lagos APC spokesman Joe Igbokwe said: “Mbu must understand that this is Lagos. Since Lagos was created in 1967, it has been in the hands of the progressives. It is neither Rivers nor Abuja.

    “This is a special state where the best minds live. It is the city of civil societies and the media.

    “We know his antecedents. We boldly welcome Mbu to Lagos but he should tread carefully and if he fails to heed our advice, we will run him down.

    “But we will advise him to drop all the excess baggage he exhibited in Port Harcourt.”

  • Mu’azu, PDP and Ekiti violence

    Mu’azu, PDP and Ekiti violence

    LAST week’s All-Political Parties Summit in Abuja was revealing. It exposed in all its damnable and bothersome details the poverty of reason among Nigeria’s political elite. For today, ignore President Goodluck Jonathan’s far-fetched ideas about 2015. Instead, let us focus on the ideas of PDP chairman Adamu Mua’azu, whose argument on what constitutes political provocation is itself provocative. Speaking during the summit on why PDP supporters and the police joined forces to attack APC supporters and the state governor shortly after the President addressed a party rally in the state, Alhaji Mu’azu veered into misogyny and simplistic psychology.

    “I wonder why the APC would use brooms to sweep off our footprints each time our party goes to campaign in states under their control,” he began on a misogynistic note unusual for a man of his political standing and education as a double Master’s degree holder. “It was equally wrong for the APC to go to the stadium in Ekiti State immediately after our rally in the state to sweep off our feet. I was worried about such conduct and I don’t know when men started carrying brooms.” If traces of PDP supporters’ feet were erased by sweeping, why should that humorously symbolic action attract a violent reprisal? And what is it about men holding brooms? Is sweeping, in his social psychology, the exclusive preserve of women?

    Then, more horrendously, Alhaji Mu’azu confirmed what seems to be the Jonathan government’s negativist and reactionary approach to the Chibok abductions, an approach that complicates the rescue of the abducted schoolgirls and undermines the constitution. Said Alhaji Mu’azu: “Initially, I thought the “Bring Back Our Girls” protests were well intentioned. That was why I asked my Chief of Staff, the former FCT Minister, to represent us, and for two days, he was there. Little did I know it was opposition protests against the Federal Government. But I want to remind us that the war against the abduction of the girls should not be politicised.” Phew!!!

    Now, we know where the FCT police commissioner, Mbu Joseph Mbu, got his inspiration to ban protests in Abuja. Now, also, we know why the Jonathan government is sluggish about the abductions. And we now know why the Jonathan presidency and the PDP display gross miscomprehension of issues and pernicious contempt for the constitution.

  • Press and state security

    Press and state security

    One of those things every student of Mass Communication is taught in school is how to navigate the dangerous terrain called state security.

    In Nigeria it is more dangerous, in fact very dangerous because the security of our leaders and their families is often confused to mean security of the state. And quite often you find journalists and media houses being harassed by overzealous, in most cases, illiterate gun-toting security personnel for publishing stories they consider embarrassing to their principal (or the spouse/children) the fact that such stories are true notwithstanding.

    And when mistakes or gaffes of our leaders are reported or the media try to hold the government accountable in line with the duties assigned to the Nigerian Press by the constitution, such journalists or media houses get harassed, abused and treated as enemies of the administration who must be punished one way or another. And there are one thousand and one such punishments in government’s arsenal, including the use of the security forces that will conveniently cite breach of state security when meting out whatever punishment they deem fit on the ‘erring’ journalist/media house.

    Over the years the Nigeria Press has had to contend with series of such punishments from our security forces acting on the orders of our political leaders. One of the laws they often use to carry out this harassment/punishment is the Official Secret Act, enacted by the British colonialists to keep every government document away from the prying eyes of the media/public. Even after independence, the legislation was still retained in our laws until not long ago when a high court nullified it. But even after that security agents have not ceased harassing the media, though I must admit the scale has dropped since the advent of this democracy.

    But while the Nigerian Press has over the years gotten used to this type of punishment on account of what was published or intended to be published, getting punished on account of what somebody else is doing, has done, plan to do or could do has never been the case, until last week.

    The Nigerian Armed forces in an unprecedented manner prevented some major national newspapers including this newspaper from circulating for three days last week on suspicion that the terror group Boko Haram and similar organizations may be planning to use the transportation networks of these newspapers to circulate their weapons of terror and destruction.

    To say that the media and indeed all right thinking Nigerians were shocked was an understatement. Initially nobody could understand what was happening as the Nigerian military in the typical Nigerian style felt it owed nobody any apology or explanation for its action. But I think somebody reminded the soldiers almost twenty four hours later that this is a democracy, and in a democracy you don’t behave that way, and so belatedly, General Chris Olukolade, the military spokesman gave one of the most laughable reasons you can ever think of, for the seizure of the newspapers, now in its fifth day today.

    Granted the fact that the fight against terror is a new territory and experience for members of our armed forces, looking for Boko Haram’s bombs and ammunitions in newspapers’ circulation vans looks so amateurish and smacks of a Boys Scout operation.

    If there was any intelligence report suggesting there could be a plan to infiltrate newspaper distribution business by Boko Haram or any such terror organization, an intelligent application of such report would have been for the security agency concerned to approach the media owners, take them into confidence to the extent that it would not compromise or threaten state security and seek their cooperation. As Nigerians they would readily cooperate.

    There is no way the military will understand the business more than the people running it. Except the military are saying they don’t trust other Nigerians and if that is the case then it would be difficult for them to win the war against terror.

    Our soldiers and other security agents I believe are doing their best but to win the war,  they need other Nigerians and they are not likely to get everybody on board if they continue to act in the way they have done in this latest clamp down on the media.

    Since the clamp down began last Friday nothing incriminating has been found in the circulation vehicles or even with newspaper agents and vendors from whom the newspapers were snatched and yet the soldiers have continued to disrupt the circulation of some newspaper, especially The Nation. Is there anything more than we are being told by the military? Is there a deliberate attempt to cripple the businesses of those newspapers considered ‘unfriendly’ to the government? These are some of the questions the military and indeed the government would need to answer to remove any iota of doubt as per the reasons given for this war on free press.

    Foolishly, some of Federal Government’s propagandists have indicated that the administration knew nothing about the clamp down and didn’t order it; meaning, the President and Commander-In-Chief does not know what his commanders are doing on the field. If this was the situation then what does the Commander-In-Chief know? And we want to win the war on terror? This is rather grave, if that was the case.

    If the clamp down is a sign of what is to come from the administration, then the people at the Villa in Abuja need to be reminded that the Nigerian Press is resilient and would fight to the last. And if history is anything to go by it will come out triumphant at the end of the day no matter how long it took.

    The media fought for then Vice President Goodluck Jonathan to be installed acting President when President Shehu Yar’Adua was incapacitated by illness, the Press was largely on his side in 2011 (because we felt that was the right thing to do in the name of equity and fairness) in order to give our compatriots in the South-south a fair chance of also ruling this country which after all belongs to all of us (and in case anybody wants to forget, the wealth of the country for now comes from there), and the Nigerian media have been fair to his administration even in the present dispensation; so for him to declare war on the Nigerian Press would be a fatal mistake. It is uncalled for.

     

    MBU JOSEPH MBU

    Since the Commander-In-Chief doesn’t seem to know what his field commanders are doing, would it also be right to say the Inspector General of Police does not know what all his commissioners are doing? Or how do you explain the order given by the Commissioner in charge of the FCT Police Command, Mbu Joseph Mbu banning public protests, especially the #Bring Back Our Girls protest in Abuja that was denied and rescinded the following day by the police high command?

    Well whatever was the truth of the matter, Mbu Joseph Mbu should know that his days are numbered in the Nigeria Police and when that time comes he will have to answer for all his actions.

     

     

     

  • Mbu, the puppet

    Mbu, the puppet

    From all indications, those who thought they had seen the last of Mbu Joseph Mbu were terribly wrong and must now have a rethink. Four months after his redeployment to Abuja from Rivers State where as Police Commissioner he proved to be a thorn in the flesh of the governor, Rotimi Amaechi, he is back in public consciousness and, as usual, in controversial circumstances.

    Now Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Commissioner of Police, Mbu’s latest outrageous manifestation was his ban on Bring Back Our Girls protests for reasons that may not be unconnected with political considerations, or more precisely, for reasons that may lie in the realm of political influence. Understandably, the protests have been held daily in Abuja by the Citizens Group led by Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, a former minister of education, in response to the April 15 abduction of over 200 students at the Girls Senior Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, by members of the Islamist terror gang Boko Haram.

    Significantly, the ban has been reversed by the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Mohammed Abubakar, who diplomatically called it “an advisory notice enjoining citizens to apply caution in the said rallies, particularly in the FCT and environs.”

    Perhaps not surprisingly, Mbu cited security issues as the grounds for the prohibition. He declared to reporters in Abuja, “Information reaching us is that too soon dangerous elements will join groups under the guise of protest and detonate explosives aimed at embarrassing the government.” He added that the Fountain of Unity, the place where the protesters gathered in the city, was unacceptably being turned into a space for “cooking and selling.”

    Curiously, Mbu’s move appeared to be an extension of official displeasure at the protests in the presidency. Specifically, President Goodluck Jonathan in a media chat last month alleged that the protests were calculated to bring down his administration; and last week, Information Minister Labaran Maku accused the opposition of funding the protests to damage the reputation of the Jonathan administration. Was it a coincidence that Mbu’s act followed these remarkable instances of far-fetched reasoning? Or was his action a next-level progression that was meant to give force to the utterances of Jonathan and Maku?

    If anyone was puzzled, Mbu supplied the answer that gave the game away. He said: “People have been protesting over a month now…it is the issue of terrorism, it is not solved in one day. Then, when you continue to do it persistently, it becomes nuisance to the government.”

    Aha! So the protesters have become a source of irritation to the administration and cannot be tolerated any longer, even if their campaign is inspired by social conscience and the need to push for the rescue, or release, of the kidnapped schoolgirls.

    This is certainly not the kind of attitude, or measure, expected of a sensitive and empathetic administration; and it gives the government away as a circle of small-minded and self-serving characters.

    More importantly, the ban had the quality of irresponsible high-handedness, not to describe it as tyrannical; and it had no place in any truly democratic environment. It needs to be emphasised to Mbu and the puppeteers that banning peaceful assembly of any group of persons represented a primitive and outdated approach to governance, and could only further ridicule the country in the eyes of the world, especially with the global interest in the fate of the abducted schoolgirls. The most important thing is: Bring Back Our Girls.

     

     

  • Senator defies police ban on protests

    Senator defies police ban on protests

    Senator Babafemi Ojudu yesterday defied the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mbu Joseph Mbu’s ban on the ‘Bring Back Our Girls’ protests. He led protesters to the popular Unity Fountain to demand the release of over 200 Chibok schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram on April 15.

    Ojudu, who clutched a placard with the inscription: #Bringbackourgirls”, said it was dictatorial and illegal for anybody to ban protests in a democracy.

    He protested with some of his legislative aides, who also carried placards.

    A placard held by one of his aides reads: “#The right to dissent is inalienable.”

    Ojudu said he was out to protest Mbu’s illegal ban order on the ‘Bring Back Our Girls’ campaigners, insisting that even President Goodluck Jonathan does not have the power to violate the inalienable rights of Nigerians to stage peaceful protests.

    He said it was erroneous to say that the protests to bring back the abducted girls was being sponsored by the opposition.

    Jonathan, he said, would not have become Acting President without protests by Nigerians in 2010.

    He said: “I am here this morning to solidarise with the women of Nigeria who are protesting the abduction of more than 200 girls in Chibok.

    “Yesterday, I picked up the story that the Police Commissioner in Abuja has banned the protest and I said to myself, this must not be allowed to stand.

    “I was originally scheduled to be in Sokoto this morning to address a conference of top civil servants, I had to call it off to engage in this symbolic action this morning to solidarise with the women.

    “It is our right to protest. Our right to protest is guaranteed by the Constitution of this country and it is also affirmed by several rulings of the highest court in the land.

    “Nobody, nobody, either a policeman or the President has the right to abridge the inalienable rights of Nigerians to protest.

    “I want to say boldly that Jonathan today is a product of protest. I was here in 2010 three times with Prof. Soyinka, Pastor Tunde Bakare and several other patriotic Nigerians to protest so that the right of Jonathan as Vice President to assume the position of Acting President could be affirmed.

    “We protested. We ensured that the Constitution of the country was enforced at that time. Why should he then, just because he is President decide to abridge our rights to protest?

    “Protest is a legitimate action all over the world. Anywhere in the world where there is democracy, protest is a legitimate action and that is exactly why I am here.”

    Asked whether his action was meant to dare the police, Ojudu said it was, adding: “I am daring the police. I am saying that I am a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I know the Law and I know the implications of my actions.

    “I am saying that the Constitution of Nigeria which is the ultimate law of Nigeria affirms the right to protest. So what the man has done is illegal. He has committed an  illegality and his illegality must not be allowed to stand.

    “We are not in a dictatorial regime. We are in a democratic regime and we must all behave as democrats.

    “If we do allow this to stand we are walking into a dictatorship. But it must not be allowed to stand. Nigerians have the right to protest. They have the right to protest things they did not agree with.

    “Why should anybody in his right senses say that people should not complain that more than 200 girls have been taken away since all these weeks and somebody would say don’t go and protest?

    If it had been their own daughters or children would they have said nobody should protest? Why did Jonathan as Vice President in 2010 ask us not to come and protest in Abuja here?

    “They actively encouraged people to come to Abuja here to protest and we protested. It is now the turn of somebody else, you are now saying they cannot protest. I am saying that I have the right under the law like every other Nigerian apart from my being a Senator.

    “Every single Nigerian has the right to protest whatever action that has been carried out by the government that they did not agree with.”

    He repudiated the Minister of Information Labaran Maku’s claim that the protesters were sponsored by the opposition.

    Ojudu said: “Does anybody need to sponsor this protest? Anybody who is a human being, any decent person would be outraged by the abduction of more than 200 girls.

    “Is the All Progressives Congress (APC) sponsoring Obama’s wife or all the groups across the world that are protesting today? Are they all members of APC?

    “Any right-thinking human being must be outraged and do something about this situation. We must not allow ourselves to be cowed.

    “We must not allow ourselves to be blackmailed. Whether I am APC or no APC. There was no APC between 1992 and 1998 for God’s sake when constantly I was writing and protesting against military regime in Nigeria.”

    He urged the women to return to the park and continue their protests because nobody can gain victory without struggle.

    Ojudu described the protest ban as illegal, unjust and immoral, adding: “For anybody to say they should not protest is very wrong under the law, it is wrong in morality and it is unjust.

     

  • Protesters seek N200m damages from Mbu

    Protesters seek N200m damages from Mbu

    The Bring Back Our Girls campaigners launched a legal battle yesterday for the enforcement of their rights to stage peaceful protests.

    They went to court following Monday’s order by Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Commissioner of Police Mbu Joseph Mbu banning the Bring Back Our Girls protests in Abuja.

    In a suit filed at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, 17 members of an Abuja-based group, Women for Peace and Justice (WPJ) involved in the Bring Back Our Girls campaign, are challenging Mbu’s powers to ban any protest in the FCT.

    The plaintiffs, led by Hadiza Bala  Usman, argued that Mbu’s order was a violation of their “freedom of conscience, freedom of expression and freedom of assembly  and association” guaranteed under Sections 38, 39 and 40 of the Constitution and Articles 8, 10 and 11 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act 2004 (ACHPR).

    They are praying the court for, among others, an order of perpetual injunction restraining the Police Commissioner and his agents from further preventing them and other aggrieved Nigerians from taking part  in protests and rallies in exercise of their freedom of conscience, expression, assembly and association as guaranteed under the Constitution and ACHPR.

    The plaintiffs are praying the court to direct Mbu to pay them N200million as damages for the violation of their rights; a declaration that the respondent is not competent to ban protests and rallies in the FCT without an order of court.

    They are also seeking a declaration that Mbu’s decision to ban rallies and protests in the FCT from June 1 is illegal, unconstitutional and a violation of the rights guaranteed under the Constitution and the ACHPR.

    The plaintiffs hinged their application on Sections 38, 39 and 40 of the Constitution and Sections 8, 10 and 11 of the ACHPR which guarantee their freedom of conscience, expression, assembly and association.

    Mbu, they said, had no power to violate their fundamental human rights, adding that his conduct, by placing a ban on rallies and protests was a violation of their guaranteed rights.

    Mrs Bala Usman, in a supporting affidavit, accused the police of abandoning their constitutional responsibility of providing security for all Nigerians, including those engaged in rallies and protests.

    Other plaintiffs in the suit are: Samuel Yaga, Rebecca Samuel Yaga, Mrs Sarah Ishaya, Mallam Dunama Mpur, Lawan Abana, Dr Pogu Bitrus, Dauda Iliya,Obiageli Ezekwesili, Maryam Uwais, Bashir Ibrahim Yusuf, Jibrin Ibrahim, Saudatu Mahdi,Bukky Shonibare, Rotimi Olawale, Florence Ozor and  Kikaku Area Development Association (KADA).

    Members of the group and their sympathisers, dressed in red shirts, were at the FCT High Court premises in large number, while their lawyers, from the firm of Femi Falana (SAN), were filing the case. They insisted on proceeding with their rallies, which they have held for about 31 days.

    They later moved to the office of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), afew meters away from the court in Maitaima, to protest the ban.

  • Chibok schoolgirls: Outrage over police ban on protests

    Chibok schoolgirls: Outrage over police ban on protests

    ‘It’s tyrany of the highest order’

    Ezekwesili, Keyamo, others condemn Mbu’s action

    The police have banned public protests in Abuja for the release of more than 200 schoolgirls seized by Boko Haram since April.

    Federal Capital Territory Police commissioner Mbu Joseph Mbu said the rallies were “now posing a serious security threat”.

    The protests have been going on almost daily for the government to take firmer action to rescue the girls.

    In a statement, Mbu said public protests had “degenerated” and were now a security threat.

    Mbu told reporters at a news conference that the protests were posing a serious security threat.

    “Accordingly, protests on the Chibok girls are hereby banned with immediate,’’ Mbu said.

    He said after a group under the aegis of “Bring Back Our Girls’’ protested on April 28, another group, “Release Our Girls’’, emerged.

    Mbu said information at the disposal of the command indicated that “dangerous elements’’ were about to hijack the protest, hence the ban.

    “As the FCT police boss, I cannot fold my hands and watch this lawlessness.

    “Information reaching us is that too soon, dangerous elements will join groups under the guise of protest and detonate explosives aimed at embarrassing the government,’’ he said.

    Mbu said a situation where the ‘Fountain of Unity’, venue of gathering for the protest, was being turned into a place for “cooking and selling’’ was embarrassing.

    According to him, many diplomats live in that area of the territory.

    He called on the people of the territory to encourage the security agencies in the war against terrorism and criminality by appreciating the sacrifices they had made.

    Asked whether the ban would not violate the freedom of expression and assembly, the commissioner said that one person’s freedom should not affect another person’s freedom.

    “People have been protesting over a month now…it is the issue of terrorism, it is not solved in one day.

    “Then, when you continue to do it persistently, it becomes nuisance to the government,’’ he said

    The commissioner also announced the revocation of permits earlier issued for tinted glass vehicles in the territory.

    ‘Yes, there is a period when permits were granted but the recent security challenges have made the police authority to revisit the issue and have resolved to revoke same.

    “The permits issued so far remain revoked. You are hearing this from my mouth.

    “The only authority to grant tinted glass permit is the Inspector-General of Police himself under his hand and signature,’’ he said.

    The commissioner also redeployed all Divisional Police Officers (DPOs) in the FCT and directed them to hand over to the next senior police officers in their respective divisions.

    FCT Police spokesman Altine Daniel, said the decision was taken after the commissioner met with the DPOs.

    “The Commissioner of Police has directed the redeployment of all Divisional Police Officers; they have to hand over to the next senior person in the various divisions.

    “The commissioner of police was not satisfied with the conduct of the Divisional Police Officers,’’ she said

    A core group that is part of the Bring Back Our Girls campaign has accused the government of sponsoring a new group, known as Release Our Girls.

    The new group shifts the responsibility of the kidnapping from the government to Boko Haram, the militant group which has killed thousands in its campaign to establish an Islamic state in Nigeria

    The Federal Government has been facing growing pressure both at home and abroad to do more to tackle the group and bring about the girls’ release.

    A deal for the release of some of the abducted schoolgirls in Nigeria was close to being secured when the Nigerian government called it off late last month. It was learnt..

    Some of the girls were set to be freed in exchange for imprisoned Islamist militants

    It was not clear why the police took the action but President Goodluck Jonathan said the protests were calculated to bring down his government.

    Minister of Information Labaran Maku also accused the opposition All Progressive Congress (APC) of being behind the protests.

    He said the protesters were being sponsored by the opposition against the government.

    The ban was immediately condemned by Lagos lawyer Festus Keyamo, who described the action as illegal and a violation of the constitutional rights of the people.

    Former Minister for Education Dr. Oby Ezekwesili took to Twitter to condemn the ban.

    Ezekwesili who has been the arrow head of the protests in Abuja tweeted last night.

    “The FG would do well to send its officials who wish to roll back our Democracy by infringing on Citizens Rights to my #Democracy101 Class.

    “There is no BASIS for and no POWER of FCT Commissioner of Police to ban peaceful assembly of any group of persons in in the city. None @ ALL

    “We of the AbujaFamily of #BringBackOurGirls have in the face of harassment by both the Nigerian Police &hired thugs maintained our CIVILITY

    “What Commissioner Mbu should do is REPRIMAND their sponsored thugs who attacked us, WOMEN at our peaceful gathering. He can. He hired them.

    “When their thugs attacked us while Mbu’s POLICEmen stood aloof, we refused to engage wt their gutter conduct. We figured this was their PLOT

    “Predictably, Mbu has proven by his latest ill advised statement of repression of Citizens Rights that he and his bosses HIRED those THUGS.

    “If Mbu’s daughter were one of 200 Daughters of Nigeria held captive by terrorists & We came out to STAND 4 their CAUSE, he would do this??

    “Our AbujaFamily of #BringBackOurGirls diverse women, men and young people STANDING with our #ChibokGirls SHALL never abandon them. Never!

    “No matter how DIRELY they want to take our FOCUS off our #ChibokGirls, We shall not permit them that LUXURY. All WE are SAYING………!!!”

    Keyamo said Mbu’s statement is against the spirit and letters of section 40 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 and the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights.

    All the above, Keyamo said, guarantee freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association.

    According to him, “It is shocking that the Federal Government, hiding under the facade of the Police, has finally openly displayed its disdain for the public outcry over the kidnap of those innocent souls. The Federal Government would really have wished that we all went about our normal businesses and live in denial like it did for many weeks.

    The Government has shown that it is more concerned about its image and self-preservation than the safety of those girls.

    “At a time when Government has not shown a capacity to protect lives and properties, it is even denying the citizens the basic right to cry out about Government’s inaction. It is like beating a child mercilessly and choking the child at the same time to prevent the child from crying out. It is inhuman, it is degrading and it is humiliating. That order by the Commissioner of Police should be rescinded immediately or else the Federal Government should be prepared to arrest and lock up all Nigerians. Even the military did not succeed in muzzling Nigerians like the Federal Government wants to do by this feeble Order,” he said.

    Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on House Compliance Hon Moruf Akinderu-Fatai said the statement is a desperate attempt by an ineptitude administration that has failed to meet up with concerns that is now global.

    He said: “If you are stopping people from converging, where is the democracy? Are we back in Abacha era? All progressive forces must resist this and we must encourage more people to violate this dictatorial directive. As Peoples representatives, they are our employers because they voted for us and they can and must ask questions when they have concerns. We, as government must bring back the girls hale and hearty and it must be now. The president should lead properly and provide directions at all times. All well meaning Nigerians must resist this directive either in Abuja or anywhere in the country.

    Lagos State University (LASU) senior lecturer Prof Lakin Akintola described the action as tyranny of the highest order.

    “This is not military regime; Mbu is ignorant of the constitution and several court judgments had said protest is legitimate. Where did he get his constitutional order to ban protest in Abuja. Mbu will go down in the history as the most tyrannical police commissioner in Nigeria. We are yet to forget his escapades in Rivers State,” he said.

    University of Lagos Senior lecturer Dr Ismail Ibrahim described Mbu’s statement as grave encroachment on fundamental rights of Nigerians.

    Dr Ibrahim said Mbu is using strong Army tactic which is alien to democracy.

    “I am not surprised by the statement because Mbu is known for disregard for rule of law; he has no right to restrict fundamental human rights of Nigerians. Even, if he succeeded in prevent people from physical gathering, he cannot stop the use of social media, which has been proven to be effective in bringing the world attention to issues,” he said.

    Mbu’s statement, Dr Ibrahim said, portend great danger to democratic institution.

    “There is reason justifying this reckless order; Nigerians should not be deterred in exercising their rights,” he said.

     

  • Mbu explains controversies

    Mbu explains controversies

    FORMER Commissioner of Police, Rivers State, Mbu Joseph Mbu, has tendentiously explained why he was deemed controversial in his tour of duty in Rivers State. As far as he knew, he explained, the gnome of disrespect was a major irritation to all police officers. Thus, his refusal to tolerate disrespect accounted for the controversies that dogged his tenure. As if this nonsensical argument was not bad enough, he gloated that under him, and in contrast to what he met, the Rivers Police Command had enough tear gas in its armoury for those he described as troublemakers. He could not appreciate the cruel irony of his violent and fiendish disposition. Then, perhaps needled and unsettled by unrelenting criticisms, he finally described himself as a good man. But does an acquiescent and servile man know the meaning of good, let alone exhibit it?