President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has ordered the immediate withdrawal of police officers assigned to guard Very Important Persons (VIPs) across the country.
Announced during a high-level security meeting held on Sunday at the State House, Abuja with the Chiefs of Army and Air Force, the Inspector-General of Police, and the head of the DSS in attendance, the decision is part of a broader effort to boost policing where it is most needed.
According to a statement by Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, the redeployed officers will now focus on “core police duties,” rather than VIP protection.
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Under the new arrangement, those VIPs who still want protection will no longer depend on police escorts. Instead, they are being asked to request well-armed personnel from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).
The president said this change is especially important because many parts of Nigeria particularly rural and remote communities have very few policemen at local stations. With officers currently tied up in VIP duties, regular policing in these underserved areas has suffered.
To support this shift, Tinubu has approved the recruitment of 30,000 additional police officers, and is working with state governments to upgrade police training facilities across the country.
Security chiefs at the meeting included Lt-Gen. Waidi Shaibu, Chief of Army Staff; Air Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke, Chief of Air Staff; IGP Kayode Egbetokun; and the DSS Director-General, Tosin Adeola Ajayi.
Many experts say this is a major change in how Nigeria uses its police. Instead of focusing on VIPs, more officers will now serve regular communities. With more manpower and better deployment, the government hopes this will help reduce crime and make neighbourhoods safer.
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