TheCable

Senate President Bukola Saraki says he is not surprised that Ibrahim Idris, inspector-general of police (IGP) refused to appear before the senate.

The senate summoned the IGP on two different occasions — to brief them on the travails of Dino Melaye, senator representing Kogi west, and on the security situation in the country — but he sent a representative.

Last week when he was first summoned, he informed the lawmakers that he accompanied President Muhammadu Buhari to Bauchi. He was re-summoned on Wednesday but he told them he went to Kaduna for an official assignment.

Speaking on Wednesday, Saraki said the IGP also disobeyed President Muhammadu Buhari when he was asked to relocate to Benue state over the killings but did not stay for more than 24 hours in the state.

“Again, we cannot say it is just to us because the president told us that he told him to go to Benue and the man refused to go,” Saraki said.

He added that the IGP’s failure to appear before the upper legislative chamber endangers the nation’s democracy.

“Under constitutional powers, it is required of the IG to come and give a report on the incident involving a colleague and the incessant killings happening in the country,” he said.

“Since beginning of the year, over 500 or 600 have been killed and we believe that the man in charge of enforcing this does not think he needs to sit down with senate to engage with us when there is something wrong somewhere.

“He has felt that he cannot come and wants to delegate it to a junior to come. No IG has ever refused to appear before the senate since we started practicing democracy. I don’t think that has happened before. But we must know these actions are danger to our democracy.”

He asked the senate leader and the chairman of committee on police affairs to “engage with the executive and send our position.”

“So let us hold and give them time within a week and come back to us and I am sure that wisdom would prevail,” he said.