PSC Denies Backing IG’s Tenure Elongation

The Police Service Commisson (PSC) yesterday denied backing tenure elongation for the Inspector-General of Police (IG), Usman Baba.

In the same breath, the Rule of Law Accountability and Advocacy Center (RULAAC) faulted the claim by the Minister of Police Affairs, Mohammed Dingyadi, that the IG had four years tenure, insisting that his continued stay in office after March 1 was unconstitutional.

Minister of Police Affairs, Mohammed Dingyadi, recently said that the IGP would not be retiring when he turns 60 years on March 1, 2023, noting that Baba’s appointment was for a single tenure of four years.

But a statement issued in Abuja and signed by the Spokesman of the Commission, Ikechukwu Ani, the PSC said the Commission did not endorse the elongation of the IG’s tenure.

It said contrary to reports that the Commission endorsed the tenure elongation of the Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba, the PSC at no time made such endorsement.

“The Commission, therefore, wishes to state that it has not endorsed any tenure elongation for the current Inspector General of Police. As a matter of fact, the Commission was never contacted on this subject at any time,” it explained.

It noted that it would always commit itself to the letters and spirit of the laws of the land and would not at any time support or encourage any attempt to subvert these laws.

“The Commission will also continue to work to ensure an effective and efficient Nigeria Police rooted in the rules and regulations governing its operations”, it said.

In a related development, RULAAC has faulted the claim by Dingyadi that the IG had four years tenure insisting that his continued stay in office was unconstitutional.

“He skipped the candidates who had up to four years in service, according to what the Police Act said, and picked this current IGP.

“This is what we have always seen with successive presidents; they would handpick whoever they want. There are cases where they have handpicked a Commissioner of Police and given them rapid promotion and then appointed them inspectors general of police, and these are usually for political motives”, he said.

Nwanguma argued that the president did not consult with the police council as demanded by the Act before appointing the IG.

He noted that it was of concern to the civil society group that the president’s reported decision to extend the tenure of the serving IGP, irrespective of what the Act says, remained illegal.

“He is due to retire either by virtue of having attained the age of retirement or having reached the limit of the number of years of service which the Police Act made reference to”, he said.

The RULAAC boss affirmed that obeying the rule of law guaranteed stability in the polity hence the president’s violation of the law was an action that should be frowned upon.

“People talk about the need for stability but the greatest guarantee for stability is the rule of law and because we know that the president has been notorious for violating the law so even if it is for the purpose of the future, we need to point out that it is not correct that the president violates the law to perform any act”, he said.