The Majority Leader of the Edo state House of Assembly and House of Representatives candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Etsako Federal Constituency, Philip Shaibu, has castigated the Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, over his comment that Nigerians should cast their votes and leave the polling units.
Shaibu who described the IGP as a stooge of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), urged him to resign his position and join politics.
According to him, Abba’s statement and all his body languages are all indications that the he is allegedly working with “enemies of democracy to rig the elections”.
“The Inspector General of Police should leave politics alone and face his work as the head of the police, particularly catering for the welfare of the rank and file of the police. IG should make sure that the police get their pension as at when due. IG should ensure welfare of police officers so that policemen and women can buy boots and uniforms. He should leave politics alone,” he said.
He added that: “If he wants to be a politician he should resign as IGP and come and face election. Nigerians should disregard him because he is playing the script of President Goodluck Jonathan and the PDP. Nigerians should remain at the polling units after voting, everybody should be peaceful and ensure that their votes count before they go home. They should remain at their polling unit after voting, those that have the energy must ensure that they monitor their votes to the collation centers.
“We expected the IGP to face the very worrisome issue of promotion of police officers, uniforms of police officers which are not given to them among other issues. If he wishes to be a politician, he should resign instead of turning Nigeria’s police force to PDP police Force. But I want to put him on notice that Nigerians will resist him. Nigerians will stand behind the police that is sincere for a free and fair election not the IGP that is Jonathan’s IGP.
“What we have in the constitution is Nigerian Police force not PDP Police force. Nigeria is greater than the IG, he cannot divide Nigeria. Nigerians should resist him and support the progressive police force and not Jonathan’s police. The international community should watch the IGP closely because it is obvious that he is the chairman of the President Jonathan’s security wing in this campaign.
The lawmaker noted that the utterances of the IGP since the beginning of preparation towards this election has been that of bias, adding that, it shows that he is not fit to be a police chief. He therefore said he should either respect himself and stay away from partisan politics or “resign and become a PDP member so that he will meet us in the field.”
