That the appointment of Police AIG Abubakar Adamu Muhammed, another Northern Muslim from Lafia LGA of Nasarawa State in the North-Central region, “is not only a slap on the face of Igbo Nation, but also the Buharists in Southeast Nigeria including the Southeast Govs in general and Govs William Obiano and Dave Umahi of Anambra and Ebonyi states in particular should go and bury their faces in shame.” This is according to the Int’l Society for Civil Liberties & the Rule of Law (Intersociety), which had in the past few months mounted a spirited campaign for a qualified police officer of Igbo extraction to succeed erstwhile IGP Ibrahim Idris, who bowed out of office on Tuesday.

Intersociety in a statement issued on Wednesday in Onitsha also alleged that Idris over-stayed by 12 days and asked him to refund the money paid to him for that time period. Signed by Emeka Umeagbalasi and Obianuju Igboeli, Esq., the statement reads in full:

“The former Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Kpotum Idris (North-central Muslim) overspent 12 days in office as Nigeria’s IGP. The former IGP ought to have retired statutorily on 3rd January 2019 after 35yrs in active policing service; having been born on 3rd January 1959, but he overspent 12 days in office following tampering of his service terminal date or date of birth and retirement after he became IGP in June 2016. Intersociety had in its statement of 11th January 2019 promised to provide more details on how the former IGP’s retirement date was tampered and extended from 3rd January 2019 to 15th January 2019.

“It is also our position that the appointment of Police AIG Abubakar Adamu Muhammed, another Northern Muslim from Lafia LGA of Nasarawa State, North-central Nigeria is not only a slap on the face of Igbo Nation, but also the Buharists in Southeast Nigeria including the Southeast Govs in general and Govs William Obiano and Dave Umahi of Anambra and Ebonyi States in particular should go and bury their faces in shame. If such brazen regional isolation in the country’s top security architecture could repeatedly be manifested and cemented in this crucial national election campaign period, then the position of the Igbo Nation in the country’s scheme of things in post 2019 election Nigeria is irreversibly or intractably doomed and darkened.

“The appointment of another Northern Muslim of North-central extraction as the country’s IGP is coming two days (13th January 2019) after our publication (time to revisit the national and regional lists of security lopsidedness that fueled ceaseless killing of Christians in old Middle Belt and military massacre operations in Eastern Nigeria). http://intersociety-ng.org/component/k2/item/404-time-to-revisit-national--regional-security-lopsidedness-that-fueled-killing-of-christians--military-massacre-operations-in-eastern-nigeria

“The publication, attached with seven tables in JPG format contained in the link above; found that out of the country’s 22 top security and justice establishments and their headships, 18 are held by the North and 4 by the South; out of which 19 are Muslims with only three Christians. None of those 22 top securitization posts is allocated to the Southeast. In the list of 31 serving Police AIGs as at 31st December 2018, 23 are held by the North and 8 by the South; out of which 22 are Muslims and 9 are Christians with only one Police AIG given to the Southeast who will retire on 12th August 2019.

“The referenced publication of Intersociety also found that out of the country’s 12 Zonal Police AIGs as at 31st December 2018, manning Nigeria’s 12 Zonal Police Headquarters, 9 are held by the North and 3 are held by the South, out of which 8 are Muslims and 4 are Christians with Southeast; a Region with sedentary and pastoral population of not less than 50m, allocated with zero Police Zonal AIG.

“The lists further exposed the northernization of top military, SSS and Police formations in Southeast and Igbo South-south whereby out of 18 top military commanders/heads of military formations in the Region, no single officer from the Region or Igbo Nation is among the named 18; dominated by 95% Northern Muslim officers. Out of six Police Commissioners posted to Southeast and Delta State as State CPs, five are Northern Muslims and out of six Directors of SSS, posted in the same Region and Delta State as State Directors of SSS, four are Northern Muslims and one is from Southwest.

“By the recent account of OHANAEZE Ndigbo and other independent sources, young military officers of Southeast/Igbo extraction, particularly captains and lieutenants, have been found to have topped the list of casualty figures in the ongoing counter-insurgency operations in the Northeast. In 2018, alone, they were independently found to have been killed in large numbers. Instances are just to cite but a few.

“For records, Police AIG Abubakar Adamu Mohammed, new Acting IGP, was born on 9th November 1961 (clocks 58yrs on 9th November 2019) in Lafia Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, North-central Nigeria. He is a Muslim of North-central extraction and was enlisted into the Nigeria Police Force with NPF Appointment No. AP25090 on 1st February 1986; promoted to CP on 3rd April 2013 and posted to Enugu State as CP on 2nd May 2013. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Geography and will be due for statutory retirement on 1st February 2021; two years from today.

“How Former IGP Ibrahim Idris Overspent 12 Days In Office

“As clearly stated in our statement of 11th January 2019, there is “Senior Staff List” of the NPF for CSP-IGP which is updated monthly by the Force Headquarters and office of the Police Service Commission and sent to CPs, AIGs, DIGs and IGP. In the list, the officers’ dates of birth, enlistment and retirement as well as their names (surname and other names), States and Local Governments of origin and NPF appointment numbers are not subject to amendments or alterations. Areas that attract changes in the Police Senior Staff List include dates of officers’ last promotion and new postings (current posting and date of posting) and additional academic qualifications (educational qualification and discipline).

“In 2014, following serious suspicion concerning maltreatment of senior police officers from some parts of the country including the Southeast, we sought and obtained a copy of the List from a concerned senior police officer who was then one of the recipients of the List. The said Officer now retired hailed from Northern part of the country but was against the way and manner officers of the Southeast were being maltreated in terms of promotion and posting or assignment of duties.

“The List sought and obtained by Intersociety, was updated on 15th January 2014 but printed on 23rd January 2014 and then had Retired IGP Mohammed D. Abubakar as the Inspector General of Police. Former IGP Ibrahim Idris was then a CP (promoted on 1st February 2011 and posted at NIPSS, Jos on 17th February 2013). His particulars of enlistment then included: appointment number: AP24246, date of birth: 3rd January 1959, date of enlistment: 31st December 1984, date of last promotion: 1st February 2011 and date of retirement: 3rd January 2019.

“See also the following link for Senator Isa Hamma Misau (Senator representing Bauchi Central)’s corroborated accusation against former IGP, Ibrahim Idris, to the effect that he manipulated his retirement age from 3rd January 2019 to 15th January 2019. http://thenationonlineng.net/igp-idris-manipulated-retirement-age-says-misau/

“As recently as last week, Intersociety was contacted by a leading and respected online media for clarification following our statement of 13th December 2018 in which, among other things, we stated the retirement date of now former IGP as “3rd January 2019” as against current official police records bearing “15th January 2019”. We not only maintained our position but also provided excerpts of the Staff List to the investigating online media outfit.

“We later gathered that the police authorities were contacted over the issue and they maintained their false stance threatening fire and brimstone until they were shown the excerpts; making them to rewind and claimed that the “list possessed by Intersociety was correct as at that time (2014) but after assumption of office as IGP in June 2016, Mr. Idris discovered the “error” and wrote the Police Service Commission to correct the “error” and the “error” has since been corrected”.

“Shockingly, following discovery in the List of skewed compilation, promotion and posting of senior police officers; exclusively exposed by Intersociety in 2014 as well as the tampering of former IGP’s retirement age, instructions were further given by office of now former IGP Ibrahim Idris for the List to be quarantined to the office of the Force Secretary and restrained from its statutory recipients (i.e. CPs, AIGs, DIGs and IGP); contrary to the provisions of the extant Police Act and Regulations.

“This is more so when the compilation and updating in the List are jointly done by the IGP and the Chairman of the Police Service commission; making it difficult to believe that the “mistake” in the former IGP’s date of birth had existed undetected from 31st December 1984 when he joined the Force till after June 21st 2016 when he became the IGP.

“Former IGP Idris Must Refund Public Funds Spent In His Illegal 12 Days In Office

“The Federal Government of Nigeria is therefore called upon to thoroughly and conclusively investigate former IGP Ibrahim Idris over the subject matter and recover all public funds including overheads and operational costs as well as paraphernalia allowances, personal earnings and other illegitimately authorized expenditures; cumulatively authorized and spent by former IGP Idris in his 12 illegal days in office as Nigeria’s IGP or between 3rd and 15th January 2019.

“Finally, the Buhari Administration is totally condemned for refusing to appoint a senior police from the Southeast as next IGP to console the Region from the past four years of central and regional socio-political segregation, exclusion and structural violence.

“On the other hand, the Administration is weepingly and grudgingly commended for not falling into the traps set by the former IGP and his cronies to turn the laws of the country upside-down by way of securing illegal and unconstitutional extension of his office tenure.”

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