By Danjuma Mohammed
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive to withdraw police escorts from Very Important Persons (VIPs) may appear like a routine administrative action, but an investigation into Nigeria’s security architecture shows it could be one of the most consequential policy shifts in years.
For over a decade, the Nigeria Police Force has struggled with manpower shortages, yet a significant percentage of its operatives are posted not to communities but to politicians, businessmen, clerics, private estate owners, retired officials and even entertainers. Security insiders estimate that between 80,000 and 120,000 police officers, nearly one-third of the entire force are currently attached to VIPs, leaving stations nationwide critically understaffed.
While police stations in some rural communities operate with fewer than five officers, dozens of VIPs move with convoys of up to 20 policemen. Banditry-prone villages in states such as Zamfara, Niger, and Kaduna often have no patrol teams at night, yet top politicians and private individuals have uniformed personnel guarding their residences, escorting their families, and running errands.
It is this imbalance that security officials say prompted President Tinubu’s Sunday meeting with military chiefs, the Inspector General of Police, and the DSS Director-General in Abuja, where he issued what sources described as a “no-exemption directive.”
A senior presidency official familiar with the meeting told this newspaper that the President expressed frustration that Nigeria’s police presence in communities has collapsed, despite billions spent annually on security allowances for escort duties.
The new policy mandates that VIPs requiring protection must now obtain armed operatives from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), freeing police officers for core policing duties such as patrols, investigations, intelligence gathering, and rapid response.
The move also coincides with the President’s approval of 30,000 new police recruits, and a separate plan to upgrade training institutions in collaboration with state governments.
Security analysts say the directive could dramatically increase police visibility if implemented faithfully. However, they warn that powerful individuals who have long benefited from privileged police protection might resist compliance, creating a potential enforcement challenge.
“They’ve tried this reform several times in the past, but implementation collapsed because VIPs lobbied their way around it,” a retired police commissioner told this reporter. “The difference now is that the President seems determined to enforce it in the context of nationwide insecurity.”
Another security source noted that redeploying just 20% of VIP-attached officers back to regular duty could double the manpower available for rural patrols and anti-kidnapping operations.
Sunday’s meeting, attended by the Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen. Waidi Shaibu, Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke, Police IG Kayode Egbetokun, and DSS DG Tosin Adeola Ajayi, marks the beginning of what insiders describe as a “security recalibration.”
Whether the directive becomes a turning point or another abandoned reform will depend on its execution in the coming weeks.
