VIPs to engage civil defence operatives as IGP recalls 11,000 police officers
Reports say that prominent Nigerians now look towards the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for orderlies and security escorts, as the Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun, on the directive of the Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, has withdrawn 11,566 policemen on VIP duties.
The development is coming in the wake of security concerns nationwide, especially in the rising cases of kidnapping incidents which have rocked states such as Kwara, Kebbi, Niger and other parts of the country, thereby precipitating the need to beef up the nation’s security architecture and bolster manpower demands.
IGP Egbetokun who addressed newsmen in Abuja on Thursday said the recall was neither punitive nor political, but a design for adequate policing of crime-ravaged communities.
“In line with the President’s directive, we have withdrawn a total of 11,566 personnel from VIP protection. These officers are being redeployed to critical policing duties immediately,” he said, adding that “the withdrawal is not a retreat from responsibility, but a reclamation of it”.
He noted that Kwara, Kebbi, and Niger states abduction incidents have warranted the redeployment of officers from VIPs.
The IGP also highlighted recent successes by the police against crime, including the arrest of 451 armed robbery suspects, 356 suspected kidnappers, 534 murder suspects, 129 culpable homicide suspects, 173 persons for unlawful possession of firearms, 282 suspected cultists and 312 rape suspects.
