Following claims by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Abubakar, that arrested terrorists have not been prosecuted because there is no anti-terrorism law, the Senate on Wednesday refuted the claim and cautioned the police to desist from advancing that claim as an excuse for not doing their job.
The Senate categorically stated that there are enough laws in the country to prosecute terrorist suspects.
IG Abubakar, while answering questions on why the police has failed to prosecute apprehended terrorists so far advanced that the lack of a anti-terrorism law in country.
But the Senate’s Spokesman Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, countered that there has been an existing law since June 2011 to prosecute anybody who has committed terrorist act.
Responding to whether the IG’s position was to cover the inadequacies of the police, Abaribe said “that is what we are saying, we don’t think that should be an excuse.
There is enough in our laws to prosecute anybody who has committed a terrorist Act.”
He continued “Senate was surprised and flabbergasted that the Inspector General of Police will say there is no Anti- Terrorist law.” Abaribe said
“If fact I have here a signed copy by President Goodluck Jonathan on the “Terrorism Prevention Act of 2011”.
“The Act was passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives 1st of June 2011 and on the 2nd of June it was forwarded by the Clerk to President Jonathan. The Bill was so important to President that he signed it into law on the 3rd of June 2011.
“The Bill makes elaborate provisions for prosecuting persons in the Act for prevention of terrorism for prosecuting persons who have committed terrorism act.
“He has not been appropriately briefed by his legal staff. This is a year and five months after its passage. On top of that an amendment was passed on the 17th of October this year. The amendment was merely to expand the part of the provision in that Bill, but everything that you need to fight the war against terrorism already is in the Bill.
He stressed that the Senate “will send a copy of this bill again to the IG. We find it difficult to believe that an arm of government will say we don’t have a law signed by the president. And I think there must be something going on there.
“So It is not true that we don’t have an anti-terrorism law. There is a law. No body can say there is no law. There a copy of the president’s signed copy of the law.