Police folks lobbying for the job of Egbetokun, even as retirement date not certain
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Lobbying is going on hard in the corridors of power for the job of Kayode Egbetokun, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) hand picked by Bola Tinubu on 19 June 2023 – for whom he was Chief Security Officer when Tinubu was Lagos Governor – and whose loyalty stretched to when he was Rivers Police.
Egbetokun joined then-Rivers Governor Nyesom Wike to put Rivers in Tinubu’s column in the presidential ballot last year even though the I-Rev of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) showed the state was carried by Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP), a fact the courts failed to entertain.
Egbetokun is expected to retire on September 4 when he gets to 60, the statutory age of retirement.
However, reports say Tinubu has extended Egbetokun’s tenure and it is not certain he will bow out on that date or get an extension of tenure in line with the newly amended Police Act masterminded by his principal.
The amendment, based on an Executive Bill passed by the two chambers of the National Assembly (NASS) on July 31, allows the President to extend the tenure of the IGP beyond 35 years in service or 60 years of age, depending on which one comes earlier, to enable the IGP stay on for another full four-year tenure.
The bill has come up for criticism and is yet to be signed into law by Tinubu, so it has not become law, per The Nation, a newspaper owned by Tinubu, as he does Television Continental (TVC), both outlets he established before he became President.
The uncertainty of Egbetokun’s exit has created tension among police top brass with some officers from the ranks of Commissioner of Police (CP), Assistant Inspector General (AIG) to Deputy Inspectors-General (DIG) lobbying intensely for the top spot.
Sources said Tinubu not having signed the Police Act amendment into law makes it impossible for Egbetokun to continue in office, but Tinubu, an acute strategist, may be playing games to append his signature at the last minute in order to score a political point.
Implication of amended Police Act for Egbetokun’s tenure
Others argued that even if Tinubu signs the amendment into law any time from now, it cannot take a retroactive effect for Egbotokun to benefit from it.
There are 125 CPS, 46 AIGs, and eight DIGs. Four DIGs are due for retirement between October and December 2024, three in 2025, and one in 2027.
The names of the DIGs and their retirement dates are
- Ede Ayuba Ekpeji – 21 October 2024
- Daniel Sokari-Pedro – 18 December 2024
- Bello Makwashi Maradun – 25 December 2024
- Sylvester Abiodun Alabi – 31 December 2024
- Dasuki Danbappa Galadanchi – 3 March 2025
- Bala Ciroma – 3 March 2025
- Sahabo Abubakar Yahaya – 15 September 2025
- Emeka Frank Mba – 18 May 2027
Egbetokun (born 4 September 1964, will be 60 on 4 September 2024) enlisted on 3 March 1990. The Police Act says an officer shall retire after serving for “35 years or until he attains the age of 60 years, whichever is earlier.”
It was learnt he has tied his retirement to Tinubu’s final decision.
The amendment to the law – now creating tension in the police – was included in Section 18(8A) by both the Senate and the House of Representatives in the Nigeria Police Act, 2020.
Section 18(8A) of the Act now reads:
“Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (8) of this section, any person appointed to the office of Inspector-General of Police shall remain in office until the end of the term stipulated in the letter of appointment [by the President] in line with the provisions of Section 7(6) of this Act.
The amendment is interpreted as allowing the President to retain an IGP after serving for either 35 years or attaining the age of 60.
The law also pegs the tenure of an IGP to the four-year term of his or her appointment as stipulated in the letter written by the President.
A source disclosed that “Despite the fact that the President has not spoken or assented to the new bill, some senior police officers have started lobbying. They include some DIGs, AIGs and even Commissioners of Police.
“Some of them are jostling for the office in anticipation of a comprehensive overhaul of the NPF structure. We have had precedents in the system before.
“There is suspense within the Force. No one knows if the four DIGs, who are due for retirement on or before December 25th, will benefit from the new law or not.”
Uneasy calm in the top brass
Another source said some officers alleged tenure extension for Egbetokun may deny them promotion or stunt their career growth.
“There is uneasy calm in the police on whether or not the IGP will get tenure extension by virtue of the amendment to the Nigeria Police Act,” the second source said.
“Tenure extension in the twilight of retirement may lead to a distortion of the system. It will expose the police system to lobbying and desperation to get to positions whether deserving or not.
“Some of those in line to succeed Egbetokun believe that tenure extension will be unfair to them. They believe the President should not apply a law at the last minute.”
A third source chipped in by saying: “I think the President is weighing options in the best interest of the country and the Nigeria Police.
“The President is the Commander-In Chief of the Armed Forces. He determines the security architecture of the country. In the light of the amendment to the Nigeria Police Act, he has the prerogative to ask Egbetokun to complete a four-year tenure or proceed on retirement.
“Let us wait till after his assent to the Bill. But any decision he takes now has a legal basis. In the past, the tenure of some IGPs attracted court cases.”
Part 111 Section 7 (6) of the Act, which repealed the Police Act, 2004, prescribed a four-year single tenure for the IGP subject to clause 18 (8), which stipulates that every police officer shall, on recruitment or appointment, serve in the police for 35 years or until he attains the age of 60 years, whichever is earlier.
This is not the first time the police are thrown into tenure extension controversy, as former President Muhammadu Buhari extended the tenures of Suleman Adamu and Usman Baba as IGPs.
Baba turned 60 and was due to retire in March 2023, but he stayed on in office until Tinubu took over power from Buhari on 29 May 2023 and named Egbetokun as Baba’s successor three months later.
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