Court Sentences IGP To Three Months In Prison

<p><strong>The Inspector General of Police&comma; Usman Baba on Tuesday was sentenced to three months in prison for disobeying a court order&period;<&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The ruling was passed at a Federal High Court in Abuja&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The presiding judge&comma; Mobalaji Olajuwon passed the judgement on Tuesday following a suit filed by Patrick Okoli&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The judge warned that the IGP would be committed for another period if he fails to purge his contempt&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Okoli who is a former police officer had claimed that he was unlawfully and compulsorily retired from the Nigerian police force&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Justice Olajuwon said&comma; &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;If at the end of the three months&comma; the contemnor remains recalcitrant and still refuses to purge his contempt&comma; he shall be committed for another period and until he purges his contempt&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Justice Olajuwon noted that though the Police Service Commission &lpar;PSC&rpar; recommended Okoli’s reinstatement into the Force&comma; a decision that was affirmed by the court&comma; the IGP refused to comply with the order&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&nbsp&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The court had also ordered the payment of N10m to the applicant&comma; being special and general damages for the unlawful&comma; illegal and unconstitutional denial of his rights and privileges as a Senior Officer of the Nigeria Police Force from 1993 till date&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;