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Police releases statement on PDP Protest, invites Saraki, Melaye & Murray-Bruce
The Nigerian Police Force has invited Senators Bukola Saraki (Senate President), Dino Melaye, and Ben Murray-Bruce for “the disturbance of public peace and public safety, unlawful blockade of Shehu Shagari way for several hours preventing motorists, road users and other members of the public from having access and passage on the highway… and violent attack on Policemen posted to ensure security of the Force Headquarters, pushing and hitting the Policemen to forcefully enter the Force Headquarters.”
This was made known in a statement released on Friday after an altercation between police officers and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members protesting the results of the Osun gubernatorial election.
Among the protesters were PDP National Chairman Uche Secondus, presidential aspirants Sule Lamido, and Aminu Tambuwal, Speaker of the House of Reps Yakubu Dogara.
The senators were “invited to report themselves to the IGP Monitoring Unit at the Force Headquarters on Monday, 8th October, 2018 for investigation.”
Melaye had posted the video below, among others, alleging that police officers assaulted him and the other protesters.
The police, in the statement titled: “DISPERSAL OF UNRULY AND VIOLENT PROTESTERS WHO ATTACKED POLICE PERSONNEL ON DUTY IN FRONT OF THE FORCE HEADQUARTERS, ABUJA,” added:
Today at about 1330Hrs, unruly and violent protesters who are members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in their hundreds with thugs and miscreants inside several trucks and vehicles blocked the Shehu Shagari way in front of the Nigeria Police Force, Headquarters creating a gridlock of traffic on the highway and preventing motorists, road users and other members of the public from having access and passage on Shehu Shagari way thereby disturbing public peace and public safety and causing innocent people to scamper for safety, suddenly the unruly/violent protesters surge and rushed violently on the Policemen posted to ensure safety of the Force Headquarters premises, pushing and hitting the Policemen to forcefully enter the Force Headquarters to cause damage to Police equipment and Government properties.
2. The Police team headed by a very Senior Police Officer despite the provocation, after issuing words of proclamation, warning this unruly PDP protesters who were chanting war songs of ”we no go gree o, we no go gree, we no go gree”, charged the Police personnel who used minimum force and dispersed them.
3. Senator Dino Melaye, Senator Ben Murray-Bruce and others yet to be identified were recorded on Camera pushing Policemen to forcefully enter the Force Headquarters to damage and destroy Police equipment and Government properties while Senator Bukola Saraki was at the scene of the attack in his car also captured on camera along with hundreds of miscreants and thugs in the acts of disturbance of public peace and public safety, unlawful blockade of Shehu Shagari way for several hours preventing motorists, road users and other members of the public from having access and passage on the highway thereby disturbing public peace and public safety and causing innocent people to scamper for safety.
4. The Inspector General of Police has directed immediate investigation into this unprovoked and unwarranted attack on the personnel of the Nigeria Police Force and the Force Headquarters premises which is against the law and condemnable. The Force will do everything within the law to bring all perpetrators of this crime to justice, no matter how highly placed.
5. Consequently, Senator Bukola Saraki, Senator Dino Melaye and Senator Ben Bruce who were captured on camera to have been involved in the disturbance of public peace and public safety, unlawful blockade of Shehu Shagari way for several hours preventing motorists, road users and other members of the public from having access and passage on the highway thereby disturbing public peace and public safety and causing innocent people to scamper for safety and violent attack on Policemen posted to ensure security of the Force Headquarters, pushing and hitting the Policemen to forcefully enter the Force Headquarters to cause damage to Police equipment and Government properties are hereby invited to report themselves to the IGP Monitoring Unit at the Force Headquarters on Monday, 8th October, 2018 for investigation.
6. Members of the public in the FCT are implored to remain calm as the situation is under control. Further development will be communicated to the public soon.
