Senior Lawyer Urges IG to Reconsider Mass Transfer of Police Personnel

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin-city

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and Edo State-based Public Notary, Olayiwola Afolabi, has called on the Inspector General of Police (IG), Kayode Egbetokun, to reconsider the recent mass transfer of police personnel, saying it has separated families, especially those who are married to fellow policemen and women.

Afolabi also called on the police leadership to take up the challenge of housing for police officers with the Federal Ministry of Housing, to check accommodation crisis confronting the Force.

In a letter to the IG dated February 9, 2024, which was made available to journalists in Benin-city yesterday, the senior lawyer said he wrote the letter as a friend of the police and human rights activist.

According to him, “While we have no problem with the mass transfers which is normal in the police force, our concern is on behalf of those married police officers who are even married to police officers as well.

“We quite believe that you will find time to reconsider those female officers who are equally married to male police officers that their children will not suffer, because in a situation where the two officers are transferred out of their station, their children will suffer as we have seen in Edo and Rivers States.”

Afolabi added: “Apart from the above, the police authorities should consider taking up the issue of housing for police officers with the Federal Ministry of Housing because you will find out that accommodation is not provied for those officers who are being transferred to new stations.

“In this regard, we plead passionately that you kindly reconsider this issue with a view to taking statistics of those female officers involved.”