IGP defends arrest of PDP senator 

Inspector-General of police, Mohammed Adamu, has defended the arrest of Rafiu Ibrahim, a Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) senator representing Kwara south.

Adamu said the senator, who is seeking reelection, was arrested after being fingered in the violence which occurred in the state earlier in the week.

The violence which broke out in Ojuku community under Kwara south senatorial district, reportedly involved supporters of the PDP and All Progressives Congress (APC).

At least two persons were killed and many injured in the incident which the PDP and the APC have been trading blames over.

Speaking at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) briefing in Abuja on Friday, the police IG said Ibrahim’s position as a senator does not absolve him of his alleged crime.

According to him, “whether you are a candidate or not, you are expected not to break the law.

He said: “The group of people that were suspected to have done the killing (in Kwara) were arrested. And one of them is a candidate of one political party. So because he is a candidate in the election, should we allow him go without facing the law?

“He has been arrested with others for him to defend himself. It is not just because he belongs to a political party; it was because of the murder that took place.”

The PDP had described the arrest as an act of provocation.