Media attacks linked to police reforms, says Ex-IGP Egbetokun

Former Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has alleged that sustained media attacks against his leadership were orchestrated by entrenched interests resisting reforms he introduced to sanitise the Nigeria Police Force.

In an account of his tenure, the former police chief said some individuals within and outside the Force launched negative campaigns after his administration moved to dismantle long-standing irregularities in the system.

One of the earliest challenges he said he confronted upon assuming office was the widespread falsification of service records within the Force, a practice he claimed had been exploited by some officers to remain in service beyond the statutory retirement period.

According to him, investigations revealed that certain officers allegedly paid money to manipulate their official records in order to extend their years of service.

Egbetokun said his administration halted the practice and initiated investigations that exposed those responsible. “I didn’t just stop the practice. We fished out the culprits and forwarded their names to the Police Service Commission for proper disciplinary action, and they were all removed from the system,” he said.

The former IGP also disclosed that another contentious issue involved a group of cadet force entrants who sought to remain in service beyond their statutory period, relying on a judgement of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria.

However, he said further investigations revealed that the court decision was based on a signal purportedly originating from the Office of the Force Secretary and relayed through the Sokoto State Command.

Disclosing that the signal was later found to be fake, Egbetokun said: “Our investigation confirmed that no such signal emanated from the Office of the Force Secretary. Even the version said to have been relayed by the Sokoto Command and tendered in court by the group was also found to be fabricated.”

He said the findings were forwarded to the Police Service Commission for disciplinary action, adding that his insistence on internal discipline distinguished his leadership. “We cannot effectively enforce the law if we fail to enforce discipline within our own ranks.” 

Egbetokun also alleged that some “ambitious senior officers” and elements linked to the “Take It Back Movement” sustained negative narratives against him, but maintained that “in spite of the media wars, I remained focused. I am proud of what we achieved to advance policing in Nigeria in the interest of the silent majority of Nigerians.”