Uncertainty On 2023 Election As IGP Suspends Deployment Of DIGs, AIGs, CPs For Election Duty

The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Usman Baba has suspended the redeployment of Deputy Inspectors-General of Police (DIGs), Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIGs) and Commissioners of Police for election duties.

Naija News learnt that the IGP took this decision six days before the presidential and national assembly elections.

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) on the 7th of February, 2023 redeployed some DIGs, AIGs and CPs ahead of the country’s general elections.

The redeployment was part of the strategies of the police authority to ensure that officers and men of the Force are not partisan before, during or after the elections.

According to Daily Trust, the IGP in a signal released on Sunday ordered the senior officers to suspend their movement until further notice.

Issued late on Friday via a police wireless message, DTO: 171830/02/2023, the signal was titled: ‘’Posting senior officers for 2023 general elections duty.’’

The signal states, “INGENPOL directs that all officers deployed for election duties suspend movement to areas of deployment and await further directive. Ensure strict compliance.”

A senior police officer, who confirmed the signal to the platform said no reason was given for the suspension.

He said, “The signal was released on Friday, but I don’t know why it was suspended.”

A top source attributed the suspension to the rivalry between the IGP and the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, over the constitution of the inter-agency consultative committee on election security.

The source said; “when the committee was constituted, the INEC chairman was named as the chairman while the NSA serves as the co-chairman. This did not go down well with the IGP, who believes he should be the co-chairman and not the NSA.”

But a top INEC official punctured the claims, saying ”the IGP has never been named as co-chairman of the committee. Check the records of last year’s election, it was the NSA.”