In a rare show of power she constitutionally doesn't have, Nigeria's First Lady Patience Jonathan has reportedly ordered the Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, to release the armed thugs of her close political allies, Senator George Sekibo and Evans Bipi.
The six men were arrested on Friday by the Joint Military Task Force (JTF) in Ogu, the hometown of the two politicians, and they were handed over to the police for prosecution.
It has being learn't that Mrs. Jonathan ordered Mr. Mbu to release the suspects as well as return to them the arms and ammunition that were found in their possession. It is as yet unclear if Mbu has complied with the order, but Mr. Bipi, a former domestic aide of Mrs. Jonathan, is understood to be actively trying to ensure the release.
Meanwhile a crisis of confidence seems to have erupted between the JTF/Army and the police in Rivers State concerning how the story, leaked to the media. Mbu is said to have complained loudly that the Army/JTF must have leaked the story to the media.
The police commissioner is further said to have lamented that the other security agencies (Army, Navy, Airforce, SSS) in the State are not helping him and the police at all in the fight against Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi. According to our source, he is citing the arrest of the six men and the subsequent leakage of the story as an example of such lack of cooperation, arguing that had the arrest been made by the Rivers State police command, the media would not have heard about it.
A source within the JTF/Army has however dismissed Mbu's claims, describing them as ridiculous and preposterous. The source maintained that the army does not get involved in politics and certainly does not take sides in political fights, calling Mbu a joker if he expects the army to do otherwise.
The source further stated that Mbu should look inside the police concerning how the story got to the media, saying that it was after the Army handed over the suspects to the police for prosecution that the story went public.
It would be recalled that the six armed youths were arrested by the JTF on Friday on their way to Ogu in Ogu Bolo Local Government Area. They had on them several AK-47 rifles arrested six youths bearing seven AK47, 146 rounds of 7.62mm Special life ammunition and 10 life magazines.
Their names were given as Daniel Ibito-Anga, Sunday Elisha, Uche Jenikachi, Ibinabo Lawson, and Okechukwu Okoro. Their leader, Ibito-Anga, is known to present himself as Security Adviser/PA to both Senator George Sekibo as well as State Assemblyman Bipi.
Sekibo and Bipi hail from Ogu and are known to be very close allies of Mrs. Jonathan.
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