Chat212 Mail Summary....
- Inspector-General of Police, Abubakar, has ordered a full scale investigation into the alleged shooting of Senator Magnus Abe by the police.
- The attack, which took place during the rally organised by Save Rivers Movement in Obia-Akpor, Rivers State, left Abe and several other persons wounded.
- Gbajabiamila said in a statement issued in Abuja that, “The Supreme Court years ago ruled that police permit is not required for a rally.
Chat212 Mail News... Report
The Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, has ordered a full scale investigation into the alleged shooting of Senator Magnus Abe by the police in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, last Sunday.
A statement by the Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, on Wednesday in Abuja, said the investigation was to ensure fairness and justice to all.
Abe, who represents Rivers South East in the Senate, was allegedly shot by the police with a rubber bullet at the venue of a scheduled rally organised by the Save Rivers Movement.
Men of the Rivers State Police Command fired several shots and used teargas to disperse the rally.
Mba said in his statement that the IG had directed a special team of investigators from the Force Criminal Investigation Department, headed by Commissioner of Police, Idris Farouk, to visit the scene of the incident and interview all the relevant parties.
Such relevant parties to be interviewed include the organisers of the event, police officers and other key witnesses.
Mba said the planned interviews were to enable the police authorities to obtain a full and unbiased account of the incident that could aid the investigation.
The statement reads, “The IG calls on the citizens of the state to cooperate with the investigative team, maintain calm and shun all inflammatory or presumptuous statements.
“He further urged the good people of Rivers State to continue to respect the laws of the land while going about their normal businesses.”
Meanwhile, Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, on Wednesday challenged the Rivers State Police Command on its powers to use tear gas on citizens holding rallies.
The attack, which took place during the rally organised by Save Rivers Movement in Obia-Akpor, Rivers State, left Abe and several other persons wounded.
The lawmaker argued that the command abused the citizens’ rights and acted in disobedience to a Supreme Court judgment, which said that a police permit was not necessary for a rally to take place.
Gbajabiamila said in a statement issued in Abuja that, “The Supreme Court years ago ruled that police permit is not required for a rally.
“So, all this talk from the Rivers State Commissioner of Police about permit is balderdash.”
He also argued that tear- gas was a “chemical weapon” because of the “gas” it contained.
In another development, scores of youths from four local government areas that make up Ogoni on Wednesday took to the streets in protest against Abe.
The youths, who protested against Abe in Bori, the headquarters of Khana Local Government Area, disagreed with claims that the senator was shot by policemen
The protesters brandished placards with inscriptions like, ‘Senator Abe, show the world your wounds,’ ‘Senator, stop creating causing confusion in the state’, and ‘Ogoni youths say Mbu should stay’.
National President of Ogoni Youth Movement, Mr. Sunny Bekanwah, described the allegation that Abe was shot by policemen as a ploy to cause confusion in the state.
Bekanwah, who maintained that Abe was not shot, disagreed with the calls for Mbu’s redeployment from Rivers State.
In a related development, the South-East Senatorial District of the Rivers Voice described the demonstration in support of the shooting as unfortunate and an indication that the party was behind the assassination attempt on the lawmaker.
