Police Promote Officers for Rejecting $120m Bribe

By Dele Ogbodo in Abuja

The Police Service Commission (PSC), yesterday approved the promotion of 

a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), Mr. Sulaiman Muhammad Abdul, to the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) for recovering N42 billion.

Messrs. Olusoji Akinbayo and Sunday Idowu, former CSPs, were also promoted to the next rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police for rejecting over $120 million from one Samuel Wilberforce who allegedly engaged in pipeline vandalism.

While Abdul is attached to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Idowu and Akinbayo serve at the Force Criminal Investigation Department in Abuja.

This was contained in a statement signed by Mr. Okechukwu Ani, Head of Media of the commission who commended Abdul on behalf its Chairman, Mr. Mike Okiro, for the cop’s outstanding performance in the fight against corruption.

The chairman, noted that the special promotions were meant to spark off a new wave of integrity in the conduct of Police officers, stressing that promotion was another way of motivating the honest and disciplined and a wakeup call to the few disgruntled elements still in service. 

Abdul had earlier been commended by the former Inspector General of Police and recommended for consideration by the EFCC, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, the statement added.

The statement read: “Akinbayo and Idowu, were said to have rejected a bribe of twenty-one million dollars and another twelve thousand, nine hundred dollars from one Samuel Wilberforce. The Officers despite this huge inducement defied the temptation and arrested the pipeline vandals.

“Their action, the commission noted has portrayed the Nigeria Police Force in good light as they exhibited professionalism, fearlessness and incorruptibility in the conduct of their assignment.

The statement also added that DSP Mu’awuyya A. Abubakar of the Kano State Command was also promoted to the rank of Superintendent of Police. Abubakar, was in 2014 awarded the best Crime Bursting Police Officer by the African Leadership Awards and Security Watch Africa. 

“The Commission also approved the promotion of Inspector Eheziekia Abiona and Sergeant Ogunbiyi Agbabu to their next ranks. The Officers who are attached to the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation and Special Offences Unit (Task Force) were said to have recovered the sum of N5 million that fell off a bullion van in November/December 2015.

Okiro, however said the commission was poised to enthrone honesty, responsibility and fear of God in the Nigeria Police Force. 

He warned that Officers who were unable to turn a new leaf and embrace the new disposition of the commission would be shown the way out of the Force in the interest of the larger society. The special promotions takes immediate effect, he said.