The Nigeria Police Force has refuted reports suggesting that officers attached to some high-profile individuals were issued an immediate order to return to base, describing a circulating memo on the matter as fake.
The denial followed a presidential directive by President Bola Tinubu on Sunday, ordering the withdrawal of police personnel attached to very important persons across the country. The directive, according to the Presidency, was aimed at redeploying personnel to core policing duties in response to rising insecurity nationwide.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said the move formed part of a broader national security strategy to enhance police efficiency and improve public safety. Subsequently, the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, disclosed that 11,566 officers had been withdrawn in compliance with the directive.
However, controversy arose after a document allegedly issued by the Mobile Force 50 Squadron in Kubwa, Abuja, surfaced online, instructing officers attached to several prominent figures to report back to base. The individuals listed reportedly included former Vice Presidents Atiku Abubakar and Namadi Sambo, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Nyesom Wike, former First Lady Aisha Buhari, Chief Justice of Nigeria Kudirat Kekere-Ekun and the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III.
The purported memo, said to have been signed by a CSP Suleiman Abdullahi, also directed officers attached to VIPs under SPU Base 16 in Lagos to report for a lecture parade.
Reacting, the Force Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, dismissed the document as fraudulent. He stated that there is no officer by that name in 50PMF Kubwa and noted that an administrative officer of a squadron cannot hold the rank of CSP. He urged the public to disregard the document entirely.
