By Adesina Soyooye
The Inspector General of Police, IGP, Mohammed Adamu, has washed his hands off the case of suspended Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibrahim Magu. The IGP is being represented on the Presidential Panel probing Magu, but it is not the IGP’s case.
Magu has been under the custody of the Police since July the 6th, when he was intercepted by Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP, Gabriel Elaigwu, on his way to the Force Headquarters for a meeting, and rail-roaded to a Presidential Panel investigating allegations against him.
The five-man panel is headed by a retired President of the Court of Appeal, Hon. Justice Ayo Salami.
The allegations, 22 in number, were levelled against Magu, by the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister for Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN.
Magu, a Commissioner of Police, thought that being a Police Officer, having been arrested by a Police Officer, and being in the custody of the Police, he could get relief from his constituency, the Police.
One of his Counsels, Oluwatosin Ojaomo, had, based on those, sent a letter to the IGP, asking him to grant the suspended Chairman, bail in self recognizance.
He had said he was hopeful his client would be granted bail on Monday.
But it was not to be.
The IGP refused to attend to the request, explaining that it was not in his territory to grant Magu bail. That Magu’s fate was not in his hands. That his case had nothing to do with his being a Police Officer.
And that even though the IGP is represented on the Panel by the DIG FCID, it was not the IGP’s Panel.
Giving reasons why the IGP cannot give Magu bail while speaking to The Sun, Force Spokesperson, DCP Frank Mba, said Magu is in custody on the orders of the Presidential Panel, and that only the Panel could grant such request.
Mba: “It is a probe by a Federal Government Panel. Therefore, all enquiries concerning the probe, or relating to actions incidental to the probe, should be directed to the Panel that is handling the probe”
Another of Magu’s Counsels, Wahab Shittu, had earlier written a letter to the Chairman of the Presidential Panel, appealing that Magu be granted bail. Among other reasons, why he should be granted bail, Shittu cited Magu’s deteriorating health.
In March, Magu was, allegedly, at a Dubai hospital for a medical situation.
