The Police have recovered the Mace of the Senate of Nigeria, forcefully snatched by hoodlums that stormed the Red Chamber, Wednesday, April 18, 2018.
A statement by SP Aremu Adeniran, Deputy Force Public Relations Officer, Force Headquarters, Abuja, said that the Mace, symbol of authority of the Senate, was found abandoned by the “suspected miscreants” at a point under the flyover before the Abuja City Gate, by a patriotic passer-by who saw it and alerted the Police.
He said: “Yesterday, this legislative chamber, the nation, and the international community were treated to the theatre of the absurd when armed men invaded the chamber to assault our staff and cart away the mace, the symbol of authority of the Senate. It was a very sad testimony, a derogation, and total smear on our democracy and nation.
The statement by SP Aremu Adeniran, said in full:
Sequel to the invasion of the Senate Chambers of the National Assembly, Federal Republic of Nigeria on the 18th April, 2018 by some suspected thugs who disrupted the Senate Plenary Session and carted away the Mace of the Red Chambers, the Inspector General of Police, IGP Ibrahim K. Idris NPM, mni, immediately instituted a high-powered Police Investigation and Intelligence Team coordinated by the IGP Monitoring Unit of the Force and further directed a total lock-down of the Federal Capital Territory with intense surveillance patrol and thorough Stop and Search Operations at various Police check-points with a view to arresting perpetrators and possible recovery of the stolen Mace.
The Police teams engaged in massive raids of identified criminal spots/flashpoints, stop and search operations, visibility and confidence building patrols, intelligence gathering which forced the suspected miscreants to abandon the Mace at a point under the flyover before the City Gate, where a patriotic passer-by saw it and alerted the Police.
While a discreet investigation into the incident is still ongoing to arrest and bring the perpetrators to justice, the Nigeria Police Force appreciates the spirited members of the public, most especially motorists within Abuja Metropolis for their support, cooperation and timely information during the rigorous stop and search operations for the recovery of the Mace
The renewed commitment of the Nigeria Police Force to guarantee protection of Lives and Property, Peace and Stability and sustain democracy in the country remains unequivocal and unwavering.
A statement by Uche Anichukwu, Special Adviser (Media) to the Deputy President of the Senate, quoting Senator Ekweremadu as pledging that the incident must not go unpunished, said further that the Inspector General of Police and Director General of the DSS will be invited next week to brief the Senate on the state of the investigations, stressing that the legislature will never be intimidated, insisting that the Senate “will never fear to legislate; and we will never legislate out of fear”.
The statement said: “We believe that there should be consequence for bad behaviour. We swore to uphold the laws of the Federal Republic and the principles of democracy. It still beats the imagination of Nigerians and the civilised world that the attackers passed through the several security checks and barriers into the National Assembly and the inner recesses of this chamber and also escaped with the mace into the thin air despite the well-known fortified surroundings of this parliament.