The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), has defended the continued stay in office of the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, describing it as “legal and lawful.”
He maintained that Egbetokun is statutorily and constitutionally protected by law to remain as IGP until October 31, 2027, despite reaching retirement age in September 2024.
Fagbemi disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.
His position comes amid growing criticisms from some quarters, faulting the IGP’s alleged tenure extension.
Criticisms
Recall that in July 2024, the Senate passed the Police Act Amendment Bill.
- The bill allows an appointed Inspector General of Police to complete a four-year term in line with Section 7 of the Police Act 2020.
- Five months ago, a public interest organization, Human Rights Monitoring Agenda (HURMA), had threatened to sue President Bola Tinubu if he signed the amended Nigeria Police Act 2020 bill, which stipulates the completion of the IGP’s term, among other provisions.
- The group argued that Egbetokun, who is set to retire in September 2024, ought to proceed on terminal leave and hand over to another credible officer in an acting capacity before the appointment of a substantive Inspector General of Police, in line with the provisions of Section 215(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Recently, criticisms of the current IGP have intensified online, even as a pending lawsuit had been filed against the alleged tenure extension by Barrister Maxwell Opara.
AGF’s Position
In his statement, the AGF acknowledged that Egbetokun’s appointment, which took effect on October 31, 2023, would ordinarily have ended upon his attainment of 60 years of age on September 4, 2024.
- However, he explained that before Egbetokun’s retirement age, the Police Act was amended to allow the occupant of the office to complete the original four-year term granted under Section 7(6) of the Act, notwithstanding his attainment of 60 years.
“This has, therefore, statutorily extended Egbetokun’s tenure until October 31, 2027, allowing him to complete the four-year term granted to him.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Egbetokun’s continued stay in office aligns with the provisions of the Police Act as amended in 2024, which allows the occupant of the office to serve a four-year term effective from the date of appointment as IGP, in this case, October 31, 2023,” Fagbemi stated.
The AGF added that this legal advisory was necessary to guide the general public.
What You Should Know
Nairametrics reports that Egbetokun was appointed as the new acting IGP barely three months after the Police Service Commission approved his appointment as a Deputy Inspector General of Police, representing the South West geopolitical zone.
- He was a former Chief Security Officer to President Bola Tinubu when he served as Lagos State Governor in 1999.
- Egbetokun, who hails from Egbado South Local Government Area of Ogun State, was born on September 4, 1964, and enlisted in the Nigeria Police Force as a Cadet ASP (Course 16) on March 3, 1990.
Nairametrics previously reported that the Federal Government had explained why it extended the tenure of the past Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, despite him reaching the retirement age of 60.
- The government stated that the Police Act 2020 provides the IGP with a four-year tenure, which cannot be interrupted by retirement age.
- Section 7(6) of the Police Act 2020 states that a person appointed as the Inspector-General of Police shall hold office for four years.
- The current IGP, Kayode Egbetokun, was appointed as Inspector General of Police in 2023 and reached the retirement age of 60 by September 2024.
- However, the bill passed by the National Assembly includes a subsection stating:
“Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (8) of this section, any person appointed to the office of Inspector-General of Police shall remain in office until the end of the term stipulated in the letter of appointment in line with the provisions of Section 7(6) of this Act.”
What This Means
This subsection of the Police Act affirms the IGP’s four-year term.
However, it is now left for the courts to make pronouncement on the pending suit challenging the IGP tenure.
