Nigeria’s President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Tuesday forwarded the Police Act Amendment Bill to the House of Representatives.
The proposed bill aims to modify the tenure of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), a development that comes after the police force denied allegations earlier in July.
The allegations claimed that the current IGP, Kayode Egbetokun, attempted to influence the National Assembly to pass a bill that would increase the retirement age of police officers.
IGP Egbetokun was appointed by the President in June 2023, with a tenure of four years. His appointment was part of a broader shake-up in the security leadership, which saw the President appoint four new service chiefs alongside Egbetokun.
The proposed bill’s implications on Egbetokun’s tenure and the police force’s leadership structure remain to be seen.
According to Section 18(8) of the Police Act 2020, Egbetokun, who was born on September 4, 1964, is expected to retire in September 2024, when he will be 60 years old.
He would only have been in office for one year and three months by September, with two years and nine months remaining of his four-year appointment.
The controversy about the tenure of IGP didn’t start with the current police boss. That of Egbetokun’s predecessor, Usman Baba, was not in any way different. Baba clocked 60 years old in March 2023 and attained the mandatory 35 years of service but he remained in office till Tinubu appointed Egbetokun as his replacement three months after.
