A SENIOR Orangeman has claimed unionist politicians are "scapegoating" the chief constable over the PSNI's handling of the Bobby Storey funeral.
The grand secretary of the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland Mervyn Gibson said Simon Byrne's future was a "matter for himself".
All the main unionist parties have called for the chief constable to quit following the decision by the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) not to prosecute senior Sinn Féin representatives for Covid regulation breaches at the senior republican's funeral last June.
Rev Gibson said that although there had been calls for Mr Byrne to resign, it was a "matter for (the) chief constable".
"I think there's a lot of people to blame for the Storey funeral – the PPS etc etc – so it's a matter for him and a matter for those political parties who've called for his resignation," he told the BBC.
"Many of our membership believe he should resign but I think maybe scapegoating one person when there's many people to blame for this situation right from the council (Belfast City Council) to the PPS and the PSNI."
The senior Orangeman said he believed there should be an inquiry "into the whole lot".
Asked if he would continue to engage with the chief constable, Rev Gibson said: "Absolutely – that's how you resolve issues.
"If the police are doing wrong then they need to be advised they are doing something and they need to try and give them an opportunity to correct that."
