Police To Interrogate Ekweremadu Over Forgery Of Senate Rules Today

Ike Ekweremadu, Deputy Senate President (Image source: The Nation)

The Nigeria Police Force has invited Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, to appear at Force Headquarters today following his alleged involvement in forging Senate rules.

But his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has raised an alarm over the invitation, alleging that some members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) were plotting to force him out of office and replace him with another senator from the ruling APC.

The national publicity secretary of PDP, Olisa Metuh, who disclosed this at a press briefing yesterday, alleged that the police invitation on Sen. Ekweremadu, issued by Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, was geared towards arresting him over phantom charges and incarcerating him. He noted that the DIG in charge of criminal investigation had already written to the senator to appear today

Leadership newspaper reports: 

He added that the move would lead to the creation of a vacuum in the Senate and the imposition of an APC preferred senator to take over Ekweremadu's position.

But the APC has denied having a hand in Ekweremadu's invitation by the police.

Following the emergence of Sen Ekweremadu as deputy Senate president, some members of the APC had expressed reservations over the process that brought him to office.

Metuh said: "The leadership of the PDP has been made aware of various threats to life and other forms of intimidation and blackmail against Senator Ekweremadu from the APC. As you may know, the APC leaders have not hidden their bitterness and resentment towards Senator Ekweremadu whose offence is the privilege of being elected by his colleagues (APC and PDP senators alike) as deputy Senate president in line with the Standing Rules of the Senate and the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

"Since President Muhammadu Buhari's statement that Senator Ekweremadu's election was 'unacceptable' to his party, the deputy Senate president, who can only be removed by the Senate, has come under threats and intense pressure from APC leaders to resign and allow a senator from the ruling party to take his position". But in a statement in Abuja yesterday by its national publicity secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the APC said it neither wrote a petition to the police nor was it aware that any petition was written against Ekweremadu.

"However, if, as the PDP claims, the petition concerns alleged altering of the Senate's Standing Rules on the process of electing presiding officers, that is a clear case of forgery which the police have a duty to investigate. Questioning the right of the police to carry out their duties in this regard amounts to intimidating the security agency.

"Forgery is a crime that is regularly investigated by the police, and it beggars belief that such investigation will now be interpreted to mean that Nigeria is descending into dictatorship or that democracy and the enjoyment of personal freedoms are now endangered. These claims by the scaremongering PDP are farfetched and preposterous," it said.

APC: Nothing To Do With Ekweremadu’s Police Invitation

Meanwhile The Nation reports the All Progressives Congress (APC) has nothing to do with the reported police invitation of Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu,the party said yesterday.

 It described a statement issued by Ekweremadu’s party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as “an outlandish statement containing all sorts of imaginary claims.”

In a statement by APC National Publicity Secretary Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said it neither wrote a petition to the police nor is it aware that any petition was written against the Deputy Senate President.

”However, if, as the PDP claims, the petition concerns alleged altering of the Senate’s Standing Rules on the process of electing Presiding Officers, that is a clear case of forgery which the police have a duty to investigate. Questioning the right of the police to carry out their duties in this regard amounts to intimidating the security agency.

”Forgery is a crime that is being regularly investigated by the police, and it beggars belief that such investigation will now be interpreted to mean that Nigeria is descending into dictatorship or that democracy and the enjoyment of personal freedoms are now endangered. These claims by the scaremongering PDP are far-fetched and preposterous,” it said.

The APC said if indeed there is a petition against Senator Ekweremadu, he should gladly heed the invitation by the police so he can clear his name, adding that no one is above the law.

”President Muhammadu Buhari has repeatedly said that at every point, the law must be supreme and everyone must respect the law, if the nation’s democratic system is to survive. Extrapolating a police invitation of anyone, no matter his status, to mean the onset of dictatorship is itself an invitation to lawlessness and anarchy, which permeated the long but ineffective rule of the PDP,” the party said.