Police vs. Saraki: Group begs FG, police to tread softly

A group, Mass Action for Good Governance (MAFGG), has pleaded with both the National Assembly and the federal government not play politics with the April 5, bloody armed robbery attack in Offa, Kwara State.

Speaking with newsmen in Ilorin, the state capital, the group said while the police are entitled to carry out its legitimate investigations on the robbery, particularly the aspect where the arrested suspects were alleging a link with the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki needed to be handled with caution.

The Oloffa of Offa, Oba Gbadamosi Esuwoye had earlier in a statement signed by his media assistant, Dr. Tajuden Oloyede urged the police not to unnecessarily intimidate the Senate President in their investigations into the robbery case.

The monarch had described Saraki in the statement as a good friend of Offa who had been of immense assistance to the town through facilitation developmental efforts and as well coming up as a huge contributor to such efforts.

Also, the (MAFGG) at the press briefing said while it did not oppose to the police handling the case appropriately, it did not like what it described as a media trials being meted on the Senate President because of the confessions of some arrested suspects.

Mallam Wali Olajide who spoke for the group said they expected that Saraki should have been given the opportunity to defend the purported allegations against him in the place by the police before going to the media world to castigate him.

“What we are saying is not about the person of Dr. Bukola Saraki alone but the office that he presently occupies as the Senate President. Any unguided ridicule of that office is not only to his person but also to the National Assembly and the nation at large.

“The global media wash given to the Senate President is not good enough for all of us because the whole world is watching and the trend is capable of rubbing off on all Nigerians even those in the Diaspora”, Wali added.

For days now in Kwara State, diverse groups had been expressing their views through protests, processions, statements and press briefings against and in support of the tango between the police and the Senate President.