The St John’s Old Boys Association (SJOBA) has called on serving police officers to emulate the virtues of honesty and diligence of outgoing Ebonyi State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Awosola Awotinde.

Congratulating the Commissioner of Police on his retirement which fell on his birthday, SJOBA praised Awotinde for living by the principles imparted to students of the school in the course of his career.

SJOBA Publicity Secretary Kehinde Bamigbetan in a statement said Awotinde graduated from the school in 1975 “after undergoing the most rigorous and all-round secondary education that missionary curriculum could give.”

He said St John’s Grammar School, established by Canadian Catholic Reverend Father, Fabian Cloutier, “combined spiritual and academic training to produce leaders for the African continent.”

“On behalf of the newly-elected president, Dr. Festus Osoba, we hereby congratulate Johnian Awosola Awotinde for enabling the moral virtues of our school to shine brightly in him through a distinguished career in the Nigeria Police. We encourage serving police officers to emulate these virtues so that Nigeria’s dream of an efficient, incorruptible and people-oriented police can be achieved,” Bamigbetan said.

The outgoing Ebonyi State Commissioner of Police was born at Orunto Jaojo Compound of Iremo Quarters in Ile-Ife. He attended St John’s Anglican Primary School Ilare Ile-Ife

and St John’s Grammar School Ilode, Ile-Ife, where he completed his West African School Certificate.

Graduating from the prestigious Obafemi Awolowo University in 1984 with a Bachelor’s in English, he served in the National Youth Service Corps in the old Imo State.

Awotinde was engaged by the Nigeria Police as Cadet Assistant Superintendent of Police in February 1986 and rose through the ranks to become a Commissioner of Police.

He was, at various times, the Police Public Relations Officer, Oyo State; Instructor, Police College Enugu; Police Pay Master and Staff Officer in the Office of the Force Secretary at the Headquarters.

His foray into international police operations include participating in the United Nations Peace keeping Mission in Kosovo (former Republic of Yugoslavia) and Sierra Leone without blemish.

Awotinde was also the Deputy Commissioner of Police Admin in Zone 2 Lagos and later DC Homicide in Force CID Alagbon Lagos.

“SJOBA appreciates Awotinde’s significant contributions to efforts to restore the school and wishes him more years in the service of humanity,” Bamigbetan said.

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