The New Nigeria People’s Party ( NNPP) has condemned the “continued harassment and attempts to arrest the Director-General, Media and Publicity to the Kano State Government, Mallam Sanusi Bature Dawakin-Tofa” as an affront to the rule of law. 
  
The party expressed worry that despite a subsisting ex parte order of a High Court restraining the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), men of the force have continued hunting for Dawakin-Tofa. 
  
In a statement in Kano, the NNPP National Publicity Secretary, Ladipo Johnson, alleged that police authorities have sustained efforts to arrest the governor’s spokesman. 
  
He clarified that the “repeated attempts to arrest Sanusi Dawakin-Tofa, which have also bordered on the possible harassment of members of his family, were in connection with a petition  purportedly written against him by a former Kano State Governor and National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Alhaji Abdullahi  Ganduje, or persons acting for him.”

The NNPP spokesman decried the action, saying it was an affront to the rule of law and an abuse of power.  He added that Sanusi has since been forced into hiding as a measure to hedge against his “unlawful arrest.”
 
His words: “As the general public can see, the situation in Kano is now degenerating into a free fall with such abuse of power, intimidation and harassment of state government officials. The situation is really bad and unfortunate. 
  
“Since there is a court injunction restraining the police, further attempts to arrest Sanusi cast a terrible slur on the image of the Nigeria Police, a sad reminder of similar actions and posturing regarding the regrettable power game in Kano over the Emirs’ saga till date.” 

“Maybe somewhere along the way, the ruling party will realize how much the leadership of their party may have damaged their “brand”, especially in Northern Nigeria”. 
  
NNPP called on the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, a renowned professional, to ensure that the Police as an institution, resists the dangerous slide into partisan politics and to restrain his men from further harassment and intimidation of Sanusi, whom, it stated, has his fundamental human rights protected under the law and should be respected.