Less than twenty four hours the Minister of Police Affairs, Mohammed Dingya declared that the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Alkali Baba, who will be due for retirement in March this year, would not take bow from service midway into the general elections as earlier anticipated, Nigerians have continue to query the rational behind the federal government’s decision.
A handful of Nigerians who were vociferous over the IGP continue stay in office, are beginning to question the circumstances surrounding his emergence as the Inspector General of Police just as it was allegedly reported in the media that considerable number of top ranking officers were forcefully retired in order to pave way for Alkali Baba’s appointment as the police IG.
The dust generated by his appointment was reported to have created crack in the President Mohammedu Buhari’s administration as a cross section of Nigerians believed that the President was dancing to the beats of his Fulani kinsmen.
A school teacher, Theophilus Adetiba described the deferment of the IGP’s retirement as akin to shifting the goal post, adding that it was obvious that the government anticipated this scenario that is currently playing out, hence, he posited that “the Police Act 2020 was hurriedly enacted to fulfill their dubious aspiration of living him in office.”
“Nigeria is neck deep in corruption, and bending the rules in the middle of game is just a clear case of corruption at work.
Nobody knows when the Police Act 2020 was secretly enacted, otherwise, Nigerians would have debated against it. For God sake, is Alkali Baba the only competent senior police officer who can manage elections in Nigeria? There’s more that meet the eye,” says Augustine Opia, a three hundred level political science student of the University of Lagos.
Right Activist, Uche Okolo alleged that the IGP may have been detailed to manipulate the electoral process to the whims and caprices of the power that be, adding that in every civilized nation, people are governed by rules and not by men.
There was an easy calm at most of the police formations visited by The New diplomat as opinions were divided among the rank and file of officers in the barracks.
An officer at the Ikeja police barrack who wouldn’t want his name print, succinctly puts it this way,” there’s time and season for everything. Alkali Baba should retire for other junior officers to grow.”
But a female police officer disclosed to The New diplomat that the IGP has made some drastic reformations in the police force, adding that an extension of his retirement date would give him more opportunities to complete implementation of some of his policies that would enhance police performance in their operations.
Already the Minister of Police Affairs disclosed that Alkali Baba’s appointment letter extending his term in office had been approved by President Mohammedu Buhari as the Police Act of 2020 had changed the rules for an IGP’S retirement.
However, available reports stated that the IGP, Alkali Baba would clock 60years 1st of March, 2023 and was expected to bow the civil servants’ rule that pegs retirement age at sixty. But all these are now in the past.
