Less than a week to the end of the tenure of the Inspector- General of Police (IGP), Mr. Solomon Arase, there are indications that lobby for his successor has intensified. By virtue of his date of birth (June 21, 1956), Arase, who is the 18th indigenous IGP, will be 60 years on Tuesday, June 21; the mandatory age of retirement from service.
Arase, who was appointed Police boss on April 21, 2015, would have put in 35 years in the Police by December 1 this year. Information gathered from highly placed sources say President Muhammadu Buhari is under pressure from about three different interests, who are pushing forward their preferred choices.
While two of the forces are rooting for two Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIGs), the other interest, which is said to be the most powerful, is projecting the candidacy of a serving Commissioner of Police (CP) from the North, who is holding a command position in a strategic state.
This is as there is uncertainty over the fate of seven Deputy Inspectors- General of Police (DIGs), who constitute the Police Management Team (PMT), which has the IGP as head. Already, those jostling for Arase’s position now spend more time in Abuja lobbying some powerful forces in and outside the government.
According to a source, who spoke with New Telegraph in confidence, the groups mounting pressure on the president are articulating the operational capabilities of their choices. This, he noted, was because Buhari wants a very competent successor to Arase who, many believe, would have achieved a lot, at the end of his tenure. “It is true that there are about three interests making separate cases for their preferred choices, who have showed good operational capabilities to lead the NPF.
“Out of the groups, one is pushing for the appointment of a very competent CP, while the other two are making cases for two AIGs. “But, I think the president knows what he wants, and as an upright, disciplined and firm man, he will get the best,” the source said. New Telegraph’s earlier investigation had revealed that one of the DIGs was being considered, considering the fact that none of the service or security chiefs, comes from his zone.
The man Solomon Arase
Arase, the 18th indigenous IGP from Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State, was born on June 21, 1956. He got enlisted into the Nigeria Police in December 1981, after bagging a degree in Political Science from the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Kaduna State, in 1980.
Until his appointment as Acting IGP, Arase was the Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) in charge of the Force Criminal Intelligence and Investigative Department (FCIID). Apart from being a lawyer and Fellow, Defence College (FDC), the IGP holds two Masters Degrees in Law, as well as in Strategic Studies from the University of Lagos and University of Ibadan, respectively.
Some of his achievements
Arase, who made it clear, upon assumption of office, that the Police under his leadership will be intelligence-driven, scored some firsts, including the provision of scholarship to children and wards of deceased officers, establishment of the Complaint Response Unit (CRU), creation of a database centre, as well as the appointment of the first female Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO).
Seniority in appointing a new IGP
If the appointment of IGP were based on seniority, then the DIG in charge of Finance and Administration, Mr. Dan Azumi Doma, would have naturally succeeded Arase. Doma had served as DIG in charge of FCIID, before he was redeployed to his present office.
However, sources said the possibility of Doma emerging the 19th indigenous IGP cannot be ruled out, considering the fact that none of the heads of military or security agencies, is from his North-Central zone. Doma hails from Nasarawa State.
The following are the heads of the various Armed Forces and their regions of origin: Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Gabriel Olonisakin (South- West); Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai (North-East), Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas (South- South), and Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar (North- East). The Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Mr. Lawal Daura, is from the North- West. If President Buhari will be persuaded to zero- in on the Police Management Team (PMT) composed of the IGP and seven DIGs, then DIG Chintua Amajor-Onu, may also be hopeful.
The case of DIG Amajor- Onu may also be predicated on regional persuasion, save for the fact that, like the North-Central, none of the heads of the military and DSS, is from the South-East. Other DIGs, apart from Doma and Amajor-Onu, are: Messrs Mamman Tsafe (Logistics and Supply), Hashimu Argungu (Training), Kakwe C. Katso (Investigations), S. L Wakama (Operations), and Jubril O. Adeniji. The Force Secretary is Mr. Patrick D. Dukumor, an Assistant Inspector General of Police.
Trend of recent appointment of IGP
It suffices to say that the appointment of IGPs by past presidents had not been restricted to the rank of DIGs, as there are instances in the recent past, where Assistant Inspectors- General (AIGs) of Police emerged IG. Available records show that former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan appointed IGPs from the AIG rank. Some of those that were appointed from the AIG rank include: Messrs Tafa Balogun, M.D Abubakar, Hafiz Ringim, and Suleiman Abba.
