Ahead of Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly elections, President Muhammadu Buhari convened the National Security Council, NSC, meeting yesterday, with the Inspector General of Police IGP, Usman Alkali Baba, revealing that the force is investigating individuals, including state governors, whose utterances were considered to have incited citizens to riot over the naira redesign policy of the Federal Government.
The 2023 maiden meeting of the council also had in attendance the Chief of Defence Staff, CDS, service chiefs, and the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN.
Briefing correspondents, in the company of the Attorney-General of Federation, Abubakar Malami, after the meeting presided over by President Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the IGP, however, said that despite the investigation, the police couldn’t prosecute the state chief executives because they enjoy immunity.
Recall that some governors, led by the Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State, had openly denigrated the naira swap policy, asking their citizens not to comply with the deadline expiration of the legality of the old N500 and N1,000 notes.
Asked why the governors had not been cautioned, the Police boss stated: “We all know why. Unless you want to hear from the mouth of the Attorney-General. We are investigating. Whoever does anything can be investigated.
“There are some people, who have immunity. I think that is one of the reasons they can’t be prosecuted now, but that will not stop us from warning them, from advising them and we are doing so. That’s for the incitement by governors.”
On his part, the Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF, and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, said the meeting was fully briefed by the Chief of Defence Staff, the three service chiefs, the IGP and heads of other security agencies, about their readiness to provide the necessary security back-up for Saturday’s poll.
He said flowing from this, the Council gave a marching order that the February 25 election should hold as planned.
According to him, the Council’s meeting is a follow-up to earlier meetings of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, and the Council of States held last week to affirm the readiness of the electoral body, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, the Police and other security agencies to go ahead with the general elections in the country.
