The show of shame at National Assembly

It is useless and unfair to judge the Nigerian ruling class by accepted norms of civilization. But even if we judge them by their own standards, what happened at the National Assembly last Thursday is, to say the least, a show of shame and lawlessness.
The partisanship by Nigeria Police, which ought to enforce and defend the laws, poses danger to our shaky democracy. Acting as agents of the ruling PDP, the Police had the audacity to teargas the electorate. Of course, when you attack the representatives of the people without any justification, it is an act of aggression against Nigerians.
There is something, I don’t get? Where did the Police get the temerity to teargas the Speaker of the Federal Republic of Nigeria? It is simply crazy! The view is widely held that they were acting on the instructions of the President. This explanation is too cheap. To accept such would mean that the Police is headed by ignorant men and women, too unlettered to understand the doctrine of separation of powers in a democracy.

The Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, and his colleagues at the SSS should have known that no one can usurp power under the doctrine of separation of powers, as propounded by the French philosopher, Baron de Montesquieu. There is a separation between the powers of the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary under a democratic framework.
Therefore, as an enforcer of the law, even if the President ordered him to cause confusion at the National Assembly, by preventing the Speaker from gaining access, he should have reminded him that he was overstepping his authority as president.
I have heard and read divergent opinions of Aminu Tambuwal’s decampment to APC. It is needless here to take side. Nevertheless, the fact remains that until he is removed through a motion in the House or through an order of court, he remains Speaker, period! Besides, a Federal High Court in Abuja had ordered the status quo ante bellum be preserved, pending the determination of a suit filed by Tambuwal, respecting the removal of his security aides.

The after­thought explanation of the IGP, as to why he invaded the sacred institution of the National Assembly, is as unconvincing as it is childish. He claimed that the Police received an intelligence report that some hoodlums were about to invade the parliament.
A Nigerian Police that has never succeeded in stopping terrorists’ attacks through the use of intelligence is now a master of intelligence reports. It confirms the view that our security forces are at their strongest when their targets are as soft as law abiding citizens.
Okay, let’s concede it to Abba that there was such an intelligence report. Does it then warrant a rascal response? Who did he share the tip with? Shouldn’t the leadership of the National Assembly be briefed and their clearance sought before the police invasion? Or is Abba telling Nigerians that he contacted Senate President David Mark, who then betrayed the Speaker by approving the police action without telling him?

Since he became IG, Abba has not convinced Nigerians that he is not an agent of the ruling party. Instances abound that he is not an IG of Police, but IG of Politics.
He said he got intelligence report that thugs will invade the National Assembly. Okay, when his officers stormed the place, couldn’t they have seen that it was not a “motley crowd”, but the Speaker and other honourable members of parliament? Why then did the Police go ahead and teargas them?
The court ruling was that the status quo be maintained. How then could the IGP, who is supposed to enforce the judgment, play an ugly role by being part of a sinister plan to push Tambuwal out of office?
For allowing itself to be used by the Executive, the Police merely ridiculed itself and made the nation an object of caricature in the international community.

The Speaker and other members of the House dishonourably resorted to scaling the gate to gain entry. This was unnecessary. It shows the desperation of the leaders to retain power by all means possible – including crudity. Illegality should not have been dignified by reactionary acts of illegality. They should have hurried to a judge in chambers to seek an injunction restraining the police.
However, they are aware of executive disregard for court orders, which is prevalent in Nigeria.
Those lawmakers have no faith in the system, which they are part of any way. Yet they tell Nigerians to have faith in Nigeria.
Nigeria is no longer blessed by statesmen. What we have as leaders are those who put their personal ambitions, no matter how unreasonable, above the nation, our democracy and our sacred institutions.
Jonathan fails to understand that, apart from being the leader of his party, he is also the President.
Unfortunately, in his bid to position his party for victory in 2015, he has shown time and time again total disregard for the rule of law. The irony is that those in power who break the law with impunity would be the greatest losers should there be total break-down of law and order.