Kenneth Okonkwo: “The IGP’s Defiance of Supreme Court Judgment in Favor of High Court Ruling is Blasphemy”

Kenneth Okonkwo, a legal practitioner, has criticized the Inspector General of Police (IGP) for prioritizing a Federal High Court judgment over the Supreme Court’s ruling concerning local government elections.

He argued that all authorities involved in the Rivers State local government elections, including the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the police, should comply with the law and the Supreme Court’s directive, which requires that local government elections be held within 90 days.

In a live interview with Symfoni TV, Okonkwo illustrated his point by likening the IGP’s actions to a scenario where a subordinate officer disregards a direct order from a superior. He emphasized that just as a police corporal cannot defy the IGP’s commands based on conflicting instructions from a lower-ranking officer, the IGP should not allow a High Court ruling to take precedence over the Supreme Court’s directives.

Okonkwo stated: “The IG of Police going against the judgement of the Supreme Court because he is parading the judgment of a High Court is blasphemy. Let me give an example: if the IG of Police gives an order and a police corporal disobeys it, and the IG summons the corporal, what do you think should happen? If the corporal says, ‘Yes, sir, I disobeyed because the commissioner of police in my state gave a contrary order,’ what do you think the IG should do with the policeman?”

You can watch the video starting at the 10:30-minute mark .