May 29: Police Warn ‘Major Political Actors” Plotting To Scuttle Inauguration

Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja 

The police high command said Monday it was monitoring unnamed political actors  plotting to scuttle  the May 29 handover of power to the next administration.

At a news briefing in Abuja, the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, said the operation was  conducted in collaboration with other security forces particularly intelligence agencies.

He  said the development became imperative in order 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 May, 29, 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.

The IG said the political actors were determined to deploy undemocratic means to undermine democratic governance.

“In so doing, they seem to be bent on deploying extra-judicial and undemocratic means to truncate our democratic heritage in advancement of their narrow personal political considerations.

“The beauty of democracy lies not just in the freedom of the citizens to freely exercise their franchise within the electoral cycle. It is also hinged on the right of aggrieved political actors to submit grievances on the electoral outcome to the judicial process for consideration,” he said.

He maintained that the security agencies would no longer tolerate any utterance capable of throwing the country into a turmoil, adding that any political actor, who does not heed the warning will be made to face the full wrath of the law.