With the retirement of the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun due for September 4, there is disquiet within the Force over growing indications that he could benefit from the new Police Act Amendment Bill, which fixes the tenure of IG for four years, Wale Igbintade writes
Will the Inspector-General of Police (IG), Kayode Egbetokun, benefit from the new term limit of four years set by the new Police Act Amendment Bill?
This is the question agitating the minds of senior police officers at the Louis Edet House, Headquarters of the Nigeria Police Force in Abuja.
Recall that the two chambers of the National Assembly recently passed a bill which pegs the tenure of the IG at four years, irrespective of the age of the occupier of the office and his length of service.
This decision of the lawmakers followed the amendment of the Police Act of 2020, sequel to a letter transmitted to the upper chamber by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Like every other request by the president, the bill which expeditiously scaled second and third readings during plenary, was passed by lawmakers in both green and red chambers at separate sittings.
The incumbent IG, Egbetokun, is due for retirement on September 4, when he would have attained the mandatory 60 years of age stipulated in the public service rules.
However, the bill, if signed into law by President Bola Tinubu before September 4, could grant the IG additional three years to complete the four-year tenure, having been appointed in 2023
Former President Muhammadu Buhari had on September 17, 2020 assented to the Nigeria Police Act, 2020, which repealed the Police Act, 2004.
Egbetokun was appointed by Tinubu in June 2023. In line with Section 18(8) of the Police Act 2020, the IG, who was born on September 4, 1964, is supposed to retire in September 2024 at the age of 60.
Just like in civil service, where the retirement age for public service officials is 60 years or after 35 years in service whichever comes first, the Police Act, signed by President Buhari recently, also pegs the retirement age of police officers at 60 years of age or 35 years of service.
Specifically, Section 18(8) of the new Act states: "Every police officer shall, on recruitment or appointment, serve in the Nigeria Police Force for 35 years or until the age of 60 years, whichever is earlier."
By law, the police chief is appointed by the president on the "advice" of the Police Council.
The council is chaired by the president and has the 36 state governors, Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC) and the IG as members.
But while the Police Act pegs the retirement age of police officers at 60 years of age or 35 years of service, another section of the bill also pegs the tenure of the IG at four years.
The controversial amendment, which is generating outrage, was the inclusion of Section 18(8A) that gives IGs special civil service rights and enforces Section 7 of the Act.
Part III, Section 7 (6) of the Act, which repealed the Police Act Cap. P19, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, prescribed a four-year single tenure for a person appointed to the office of the IG subject to the provisions of clause 18 (8).
But Section 18(8A) of the Nigeria Police Act 2020 was amended as follows: "Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (8) of this section, any person appointed to the office of Inspector-General of Police shall remain in office until the end of the term stipulated in the letter of appointment in line with the provisions of Section 7(6) of this Act."
The implication is that no matter the age of a police officer or the number of years he or she has put in service, once the officer is appointed as IG, the officer must spend four years in office.
If the bill is assented to by President Tinubu, Egbetokun could stay in office until June 2027 unless removed by the president.
Before the latest amendment that makes it mandatory for the IG to complete a four-year tenure from the date of his appointment, irrespective of his age or length of service, a former IG had attempted to exploit Section 7 of the Police Act to remain in office for four years but failed because of the 60 retirement age or 35 years of service in the public service rules.
Many see the passage of the bill just less than four years after the former President Buhari's administration amended the same Act to repeal the Police Act of 2004 as another selfish move by the ruling class to please themselves instead of building strong institutions.
For instance, in 2021, the former IG, Mohammed Adamu, argued in a case at the Federal High Court that the new Nigeria Police Act gave him a four-year tenure that would only lapse in 2024.
According to him, his tenure should lapse in 2023 if counted from 2019, when he was appointed, or in 2024 if counted from 2020, when the new Nigeria Police Act came into force.
Former President Buhari gave Adamu a three-month tenure extension but later fired him before the expiration of the extension.
Usman Alkali Baba who succeeded Adamu, also had his tenure extended by Buhari in March 2023 but was later removed by President Tinubu when he assumed office.
However, human rights lawyers and civil society groups have kicked against Egbetokun enjoying the new term limit, given his obsession with haunting journalists under the pretext of enforcing the Cybercrime Act, while bandits and kidnappers hold sway in the country, killing, kidnapping Nigerians in their homes and on the highways and also collecting levies from farmers in the North for them to have access to their farms.
Other analysts have condemned the frequent amendments to the country's laws to satisfy the aspirations of those in the corridor of power, describing it as unhealthy for democracy.
"Our democracy has become weak because the police, which are supposed to be loyal to the constitution and the people, are being controlled by powerful individuals in government. Robust institutions are essential for a healthy democracy, drawing parallels to the United States, where strong institutions and active citizens' participation contribute to economic dominance," Edegbai Ohimai stated.
Others have also wondered why Deputy Inspectors General of Police (DIGs), Assistant Inspectors General of Police (AIGs), Commissioners of Police and other officers should be retired when they attain the 60 years or 35 years in service while the IG, who is their senior, is given automatic four-year tenure, which is contrary to public service rules.
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For instance, some members of the Force management team who have already attained the mandatory age of 60 years or 35 years in service, have proceeded on pre-retirement leave. One of them is the Force Secretary, Mrs. Yetunde Longe, who retired as an Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) after clocking 60 years in service.
A retired AIG who did not want his name told THISDAY that: "It is strange that DIGs, AIGs, CPs and other officers who are juniors to IGs in ranks and age are being retired in droves while the IGs remain in office four years irrespective of his age when he was appointed. This is completely unfair.
"For me, it is not logical for the IG beyond the age of four years, while his juniors who have attained 60 years of age or have put in 35 years in service proceed on retirement simply because he is favoured by the president."
According to him,"You can see why the former United States President, Barack Obama excluded Nigeria from his state visit to Africa was because of the weakness of the country's institutions, which he said puts democracy in peril. Many laws in Nigeria are not made for the country's institutions to be strong and independent but for selfish reasons. Tell me why they should amend the Police Act whether now or before?" he queried.
With the way and manner the police under Egbetokun are notorious for human rights abuses and impunity, hound journalists and utilised live ammunition to quell #EndBadGovernance protest, human rights groups believe that he should not be rewarded with a four-year tenure under the incoming police law.
