May 29: Police, Military Warn ‘Major Political Actors’

The Nigerian police have issued a warning to ‘major political actors’ plotting to scuttle the May 29 inauguration of Bola Tinubu as president of Nigeria.

Development Diaries reports that the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Usman Baba, gave the warning at a news briefing in Abuja, the nation’s capital.

Baba noted that the police are working closely with other security operatives, particularly intelligence agencies, to tame subversive elements attempting to destabilise the peaceful atmosphere in the country.

‘Following the successful conclusion of the 2023 general election, it has been observed that some major political actors that the outcome did not favour have been issuing public threats that are directed at instigating actions to frustrate the presidential inauguration ceremony on [29 May, 2023].

‘The Nigeria police and the national intelligence community have been closely monitoring the activities of these political elites as well as other elements who have formed themselves into unpatriotic brands whose only fantasy, in recent times, is to subvert our national security interests’, he said.

For his part, Nigeria’s army chief, Lt Gen. Faruk Yahaya, threatened to crack down on potential threats to national security and warned troublemakers not to test the will of the military.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Tinubu the winner of the election after the former Lagos State governor secured 8,794,726 votes. But the candidate of the Peoles Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, and his counterpart in the Labour Party, Peter Obi, are challenging the outcome of the poll in court.

Recently, five residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) filed a suit seeking to stop the inauguration of Tinubu.

It is understandable that not everyone is happy with the outcome of the election. However, Development Diaries believes that there is no constitutional process to delay the presidential inauguration.

We call on political parties and their candidates to educate their supporters on the need for peace to prevent tension in the country.

We also call on the security operatives to ensure that they carry out their duties before and during the inauguration based on the law and that the rights of citizens are protected.

Photo source: BBC

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