The suit is
over NOPRIN's letter to the Senate, stating four grounds of objection to Okiro’s
confirmation as Chairman of Police Service Commission. The case would be
presided over by Justice Dabiri.
The
Foundation spokesperson, Okechukwu Nwanguma, said: “We are happy to meet Mr.
Okiro in Court so that he can prove that he has a ‘defamable’ reputation. We
invite Nigerians to keep a close watch over this case which promises to be
interesting as it progresses.”
It will be
recalled that a report by NOPRIN, in 2013 had expressed strong opposition to
the nomination of Mr. Mike Okiro, a former Inspector General of Police (IGP),
as Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC), calling on the Senate to
decline it. The report followed the
nomination of the former police boss by President Goodluck Jonathan.
According to the NOPRIN, the objections were
grounded in law as well as the overriding goal of preserving and enhancing the
institutional effectiveness and credibility of the PSC and offered four
specific reasons for opposing Mr. Okiro’s nomination.
One of the
grounds is the need to secure the role of the Commission as civilian credible
and effective oversight mechanism.
The organization
had also alleged that Okiro did not kick against extrajudicial executions in Nigeria.
NOPRIN further pointed out that under the PSC
Act, the re-nomination of members who have previously served a term is
unlawful.
“NOPRIN
believes that the PSC evinced under the Constitution and the PSC Act of 2001 is
an independent and impartial institution,” the report said. “Such an institution is worth fighting for.
Appointing Mr. Okiro as a former Inspector-General of Police to head the PSC
subverts the independence and impartiality of the PSC.”
No comments:
Post a Comment