At least, 183 senior police officers, who would have been in line to become the Inspector General of Police are now facing an uncertain future, Sunday Telegraph can reveal. The officers made up of Deputy Inspectors General of Police, Assistant Inspectors General of Police and Commissioners of Police are currently facing the possibility of retirement at their ranks or a progression that would not see them become IGP before 2027.
That is following the extended tenure of office granted to the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, by the National Assembly and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
A Sunday Telegraph investigation revealed that the affected officers may either have reached the mandatory 60 years of retirement or 35 years in service by 2027. It would be recalled that Tinubu recently issued a new four-year tenure appointment letter to Egbetokun. The Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, had made the disclosure in a statement issued on September 6.
The release, which was triggered by the mixed reactions that attended the development, read in part: “The attention of the Nigeria Police Force has been drawn to various misleading reports and misinterpretations concerning the tenure of the Inspector General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, and wishes to categorically state that what His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, approved for the IGP is not an extension of tenure, but rather the proper application of the law governing the tenure of the office of the IGP.
“Contrary to the misinformation being circulated on social media and in the news, an appointment letter in circulation was issued to the IGP shortly after his appointment was confirmed by the Police Council. ‘This letter, dated 3rd November 2023, clearly stated that the President had approved a four-year tenure for the IGP in accordance with the provisions of Section 215(a) and Section 28(c) of the Third Schedule of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
“It is important to emphasize that the IGP does not need to lobby for any tenure extension as his appointment letter explicitly grants him a-four-year tenure from the date of his appointment. “The ongoing circulation of false information is clearly the handiwork of pessimists and mischief makers, who are determined to spread baseless narratives against the office and the personality of the IGP for obvious reasons and pecuniary gains. “Furthermore, the IGP has since been issued with another letter in accordance with the provisions of the Police Act, 2020 (as amended), which supersedes the earlier correspondence. This clarification is necessary to put an end to the speculations and falsehoods being spread”.
By virtue of the said letter, Egbetokun, who is the 22nd indigenous police chief, is expected to bow out of the Force sometime in 2027, all things being equal. But highly-placed sources, who spoke in confidence with Sunday Telegraph, said the development might have adverse effect on the career progression of many senior officers. Investigation revealed that most of the eight (8) Deputy Inspectors General (DIGs), who currently constitute the Police Management Team (PMT), may bow out of service before 2027. Considering the mandatory retirement age, as well service period, it was further learnt that many of the 48 Assistant Inspectors General of Police, would have retired during the pendency of the appointment, side-by-side with the statutory age/service requirements.
“Let’s be clear on this: While the IGP did not lobby for the privileged 4-year appointment, it is important to state that the development will naturally affect the career growth of many senior officers. “This is against the backdrop of the extant provisions of the law relating to police officers’ age, and service years. “To buttress my position, kindly note that the provisions of Section 215(a) and Section 28(c) of the Third Schedule of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), only apply to the occupant of the office of the Inspector General of Police.
“Strictly speaking, some, if not most of the 8 Assistant Inspectors General of Police, 48 Deputy Inspectors General of Police, and 127 Commissioners of Police, might be affected”, one of the sources hinted. Speaking on the implication of the ‘overstay’ in office of Egbetokun on the retirement date of officers below him when they attain the mandatory sixty (60) years of retirement or 35 years in service, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Victor Okpara, while explaining that the position of the IGP is a different ballgame, posited that the law extending the tenure of the IGP has been passed by the National Assembly. He, therefore, insisted that officers below the rank of the IGP would not be part of the gesture because it only concerns the office of the IGP, who is an appointee of the president.
According to Okpara: “Since officers below the rank of the IGP will not benefit from that gesture, they have no choice but to go when they attain the retirement age of 60. “The law extending the tenure of the IGP has been validly passed by the National Assembly. That becomes the law. So, since the law does not apply to officers below the rank of the IGP, and the normal retirement age is 60, they would have to bow out when they reach that age.
“But if anybody feels strongly about the legality of the law extending the tenure of the IGP, such a person or persons could approach the court to challenge the tenure extension of the IGP as granted by the National Assembly and signed into law by President Bola Tinubu.
“But to the extent that the law has been passed and validly signed into law, and it applies only to the IGP, then that means the extension is valid.” Another SAN, Dr Abiodun Layonu, in sharing his thoughts, said the amended law has empowered President Tinubu to extend the tenure of the IGP legally. In his words: “But in this instance, now, the current IGP remains in office, the DIGs, AIGs, CPs etc will remain in office if the law that has been amended that enables the president to allow the IGP to remain in office also affects them.
“But that is not to be. This is because the DIGs, AIGs, CPs and the rest of them do not have that type of statutory gesture. “So, they will still go at 60. That is what it means. This is because they were not appointed by the president but rather, they were promoted.
“Interestingly, the president can even take an officer below the rank of a DIG and make him the IGP. If this happens, all the officers senior to him before that appointment will all go.”
(New Telegraph)
