Discontent as Egbetokun Allegedly Ignores S’east, S’south in Police Chiefs’ Deployment 

South-south has three, South-east one out of 36 states plus FCT

PSC says situation temporary 

Linus Aleke in Abuja 

Senior police officers are covertly grumbling over what they described as the systemic entrenchment of tribalism in the deployment of commissioners of police to state commands by the leadership of the Nigeria police and the Police Service Commission (PSC), THISDAY learnt yesterday.

The senior officers who wish to remain anonymous for fear of victimisation, alleged that the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, is colluding with the Chairman of the PSC,  Hashimu Argungu (rtd), to deny commissioners of police from the South-east and South-south postings to state commands.

The two leaders, it was alleged, have ganged up to undermine the rules set out by the Police Act, 2020, as amended, in deploying Commissioners of Police to state commands. The Police Act gives the PSC Chairman or the IGP the power to deploy or assign Commissioners of Police to state commands. 

Section 12 (2) of the Act stipulates that: “The Police Service Commission shall, among the Commissioners of Police (CPs) appointed under subsection (1), assign a Commissioner of Police to state commands and to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT)”.

“The Police Service Commission or the Inspector-General of Police, in assigning or deploying, as the case may be, Commissioners of Police under this section to state commands, departments or units, shall reflect the principle of Federal Character as provided for in the Constitution and under the relevant Act,” it stated.

But it was gathered that Egbetokun and Argungu have continued to approve and deploy Commissioners of Police from the North and South-west to state commands across the federation, to the detriment of the South-east and South-south.

This, the aggrieved officers said, is in flagrant violation of extant legal instruments governing the exercise of such powers, particularly the federal character principles as provided for in the Constitution and the Police Act 2020, as amended.

Checks by THISDAY revealed that commissioners of police from the North are currently manning over 20 state police commands, while the South is left with the remaining.

Meanwhile, the South-west enjoys an advantage over other zones in the south, with 11 commissioners from the South-west in charge of state commands across the federation, leaving the South-south with fewer than three and the South-east with only one. 

The latest appointments and deployment of nine commissioners of police to state commands by the PSC, as recommended by the IGP, validated the alleged collusion by the two leaders to favour their respective zones and marginalise the South-east and South-south. 

For instance, a statement by the PSC stated that it approved the IGP’s recommendations, assigning Ibrahim Maikaba from Kano State as Commissioner of Police for Zamfara State, while Breret Simon from Plateau State will head Taraba State. The commission added that Christopher Emmanuel from Niger State has been appointed as CP for Yobe, and Olusegun Omosayin from Ondo State will oversee Cross River State.

“Other appointments include Adamu Elleman from Jigawa State as Commissioner of Police (CP) for Niger State, Sani Aliyu from Kogi State for Bauchi Command, and Bello Shehu from Gombe State for Katsina Command,” the statement further said. 

From the latest deployment, it was evident  that no commissioners of police are from the South-east and South-south, further fuelling the grumbling in the force. 

It further revealed that the Commissioners of Police in charge of Rivers State, Delta, Lagos, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are from the North and South-west. In addition, the Commissioners of Police in charge of Kwara State, Oyo, Ogun, Cross River, and Plateau states are also from the South-west.

The lopsided deployment of Commissioners of Police to state commands by Egbetokun from the South-west and PSC Chairman, Argungu from the Northern part of the country, favouring officers from their respective regions, is said to be raising tension in the police. 

The appointments and deployments of commissioners of police along ethnic lines, rather than on the basis of merit and federal character as provided for by law, close watchers say have the potential to portray the incumbent administration in bad light. 

When contacted, the Force Spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, declined to comment. A message sent to his mobile number was not responded to at the time of filing this report.

On his part, the spokesperson of the Police Service Commission (PSC), Ikechukwu Ani, said: “I can only tell you that my Chairman and the IGP did not collude to share any postings, and that the Commission has always believed in fairness and equity. 

“However, we should also note that postings to State Commands must include merit and competence. I am aware that at the AIG level, you will find South-east and South-south officers holding important offices.

“Furthermore, in the DIG cadre, out of the seven, the South-east has two, while other zones have one. This is the Police Management Team, the highest decision-making body of the Police. 

“If the South-east geopolitical zone is shortchanged, it is only temporary, as I know that in subsequent postings, they will benefit. I refuse to agree that there is a deliberate attempt to marginalise the zone; you can check the status quo in the very recent past.” 

Ani further argued that the posting of police officers to states as Command CPs is an ongoing process, and that more postings will always be forthcoming. He added: “It is not an annual event, and I can assure you that the Commission will ensure equity and balance.” 

The Executive Director of Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), Okechukwu Nwanguma, explained that the federal character principle requires the country’s diversity to be reflected in the distribution of resources and political offices.

Nwanguma who spoke to THISDAY in a telephone chat stated: “In other words, Nigeria is a diverse country with multiple ethnicities, and the federal character principle aims to prevent any part of the country from feeling marginalised or neglected in the distribution of national resources and political offices. 

“Furthermore, it should ensure distributive justice, promoting national harmony, unity, and progress. When we have the Nigerian Police, made up of 200,000 personnel, and while posting commissioners of police, a major ethnic group like the Igbo is getting only one out of 36 states, plus the FCT, it is clear evidence of the continuation of marginalisation against the Igbo people, and I think it is a cause for concern.

“Again, if you check across the South-east states, commissioners of police posted there are hardly Igbo people. Most of them are from the North, and on a few occasions from the South-west. I think there is something wrong with that. 

“This is the colonial system of policing that uses strangers to police local communities to achieve maximum conquest, and I think that if this government truly wants to build a nation, it needs to begin addressing these injustices that continue to fuel separatist agitations in the South-east,” he added.