Mark Exonerates His Security Details, Says DPO Lied

The Senate President, David Mark, on Wednesday alleged that the Divisional Police Officer attached to the National Assembly, Mr. James Idachaba, lied in his accounts of the events of the November 20 invasion of the federal parliament by security agents.

Idachaba, a Superintendent of Police, had alleged before the Senate ad-hoc committee probing the unfortunate incident on Monday that he watched one of the police details attached to Mark, released tear gas canisters during the commotion that ensued on November 20.

Mark, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, said contrary to the claims of Idachaba, none of his security details was responsible for the use of tear gas on the person of the Speaker, House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Waziri Tambuwal.

The statement read in part, “We wish to state without equivocation that the security details attached to the President of the Senate, Senator David Mark, did not and could not have attacked the person of Speaker Tambuwal with tear gas.

“We find the reports credited to SP Idachaba that security details of Senator Mark attacked Speaker Tambuwal with tear gas as absolute falsehood, dubious, vexatious, horrible and embarrassing.”