By Egena Sunday Ode
Notwithstanding the fact that the newly promoted ex-Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Commission (EFCC) has been retired, Minister of Police Affairs, Maigari Dingyadi has said that the former czar would be prosecuted if indicted by the probe panel chaired by Justice Ayo Salami (rtd).
Recall that following the accusations raised against the former anti-corruption boss by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, President Muhammadu Buhari had set up an investigative panel chaired by Salami to probe him in July 2020.
On conclusion of it’s assignment, the Salami panel turned-in its report in November of same year to the President.
Answering a question on why the Police authorities have yet to act on the recommendations of the panel but chose to promote Magu to the position of the Assistant Inspector General (AIG) of Police before his eventual retirement, Dingyadi said “this is an issue that should have been addressed by the Police Service Commission, who have the responsibility to conduct promotions of the police. They are not here. And I am aware that the Police Service Commission is directly under the presidency.
“So, I cannot speak for them. But what I know is that Mr. Magu has already retired and that is what I can tell you now. The fact that he was promoted is a matter for the Police Commission to maybe throw more light on. I’m not aware of the position of government on the report you are talking about and I think it is still being under consideration. It doesn’t mean that when he retires, the laws will not catch up with him whenever he is found guilty. So, I think it’s not completely finished business.”
The minister, who declined details on the corruption charges against Abba Kyari, a suspended Deputy Commissioner of Police now in custody facing prosecution, because it would be subjudice to do so, disclosed that the Police has begun to deploy technology in dealing with crimes and criminalities in the country.
According to him, the Police authorities were striving to be civil in their operations but would not hesitate to deploy firearms where necessary in the discharge of their responsibilities.
Dingyadi also disclosed that the Ministry was poised to recruit an additional 10,000 police constables in the next one month or two in line with the President’s directive to employ 40,000 men within his second tenure.
Responding to request of psychiatric test for policemen to ascertain their psychological stability, the minister said the men were being made to undergo rigorous and extensive screening, including medical tests on prospective recruits, assuring that the best available were those engaged in the system.
While noting that the demands of the ENDSARS protesters boiled down to police welfare, which the government has begun to implement, the minister disclosed that 25,000 comstabularies have been trained for community policing.
He however urged the community leaders to cooperate with the comstabularies posted to them by gathering and sharing intelligence as well as reporting cases that needed to be reported.
Asked to identify the unknown gunmen causing havoc in the South-east since the members of the Indigenous People’s of Biafra (IPOB) have disowned the killings in the region, Dingyadi said “the unknown gunmen, you want to know who they are? I want to tell you that they are unknown gunmen and they are also criminals. They’re terrorists and we are dealing with them in the language they understand.”
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