Speaking at a meeting with some stakeholders at the Government House in Makurdi, Benue State, President Buhari denied knowledge of days which the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris spent in Benue State after he was ordered to relocate to the state.
The Inspector General of Police was ordered on January 9, to immediately move to Benue State to restore law and order and prevent further loss of lives and properties, from escalating and spreading in the state, in the wake of public outcry that greeted the murder of over 70 persons by suspected herdsmen.
However Mr Idris obeyed the President’s directive, and reportedly left Benue State for Nasarawa State after spending 24 hours in the state, an act which attracted more condemnation from Nigerians even as the presidency failed to reprimand him.
“What I did was to call him and give him the directive. I didn’t know he moved here (Benue State) and didn’t spend … and then moved to Nasarawa. It’s only now that I am knowing that.
But I know I dispatched him here,” the President said.
President Buhari who however said the meeting was not the best place to expose the inefficiency of his appointees, said he will engage the IGP for inquires upon his return to Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.
He further said the IGP is slow in using the intelligence and resources available to him, but as a loyal leader, all he did was give the directive to the IGP instead of publicly exposing his incompetence.
The Nigerian President who also appealed to Benue people to exercise restraint and live in peace with their neighbours, also said;
“I cannot overlook the killings in Benue or any other part of Nigeria. I cannot do that. I am genuinely worried about the attacks in Benue and we are doing everything to end them’.
