Kabiru Sokoto’s Escape Group Wants IGP, Police Minister Sacked

INSPECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE, MR HAFIZ RINGIM (L) AND THE POLICE AFFAIRS MINISTER, NAVY CAPTAIN CALEB OLUBOLADE (RTD)(R)

SAN FRANCISCO, January 22, (THEWILL) - An Abuja based group, the New Nigeria Forum (NNF) has joined other Nigerians, calling for the sack of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr Hafiz Ringim and the Police Affairs Minister, Navy Captain Caleb Olubolade (rtd) over the mysterious escape of the arrested Boko Haram kingpin, Kabir Umar, otherwise known as Kabiru Sokoto, the alleged mastermind of the Christmas Day 2011 bombing of St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, Niger State.
 
The group, which described the incident as a national disgrace noted that; “In a saner clime, the IGP, Police Minister and other people that are directly or indirectly involved in such a national embarrassment would have resigned voluntarily or at best, step aside from their positions to allow for an unhindered investigation.”
 
NNF said in a statement signed by its Director of Research and Communications, Mallam Ahmed Abdulkareem that there was no how such a high profile suspect could have been moved out of detention to anywhere without the consent of the IGP, the Minister and even the National Security Adviser (NSA).
 
“There are therefore questions that must be answered by the IGP, the Police Minister and probably the NSA, and one of such question was; what they did immediately they heard that Kabiru Sokoto was arrested?
 
“When Kabiru Sokoto was arrested, was there any briefing of the Security Chiefs or the Police Commissioner, Zakari Biu…?
 
“And if truly he escaped as we are being made to believe, who authorised the movement of such a suspected high-ranking member of Boko Haram out of police detention to ‘search his house’ by just 10 policemen?
 
“Whichever way one chooses to look at it, the entire Police Force is the main culprit, and those at the helms of affairs must be given the boot if they are so shameless that they have not resigned by themselves.
 
“Therefore, we wish to call on President Goodluck Jonathan to show some seriousness in tackling the insecurity in the country by relieving the IGP and the Police Affairs Minister of their jobs without further delay.
 
“Failure to do this will simply imply that President Jonathan is truly not in charge of the affairs of the country and that the welfare of the people in government is more important to him than that of those Nigerians that are being killed daily by Boko Haram,” NNF said.