President Bola Tinubu’s directive ordering the withdrawal of approximately 100,000 police officers from VIP and political escorts has continued to attract mixed reactions across the country.
During a recent security briefing at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Tinubu instructed that the officers currently assigned to Very Important Persons be reassigned to frontline policing roles, including counter-insurgency operations. The president also approved the recruitment of 30,000 additional personnel to strengthen the Nigeria Police Force amid worsening security threats nationwide.
The decision has generated widespread debate, with some Nigerians questioning whether the directive will be fully implemented, given similar orders in the past that were not enforced. Others, however, have welcomed the move as a long-overdue step toward rebuilding the police force and improving national security.
Weighing in on the development, former federal lawmaker Senator Shehu Sani said on X that the president’s directive “will only begin and end up as a statement,” expressing doubt over its execution.
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He wrote, “Withdrawal of police from VIPs is a good idea and a good policy statement in view of the nation’s urgent security needs, but it will only begin and end up as a statement.”
Former presidential media aide Bashir Ahmad, however, praised the president, saying the move will allow security agencies to “focus primarily on their essential policing responsibilities.”
He wrote on X, “President Bola Tinubu has directed the removal of police officers who are currently assigned to protect VIPs.
“From this point onward, law enforcement agencies will allocate their resources to focus primarily on their essential policing responsibilities. This is so good coming from the Presidency.”
The Inspector General of Police (IGP) had directed the withdrawal of Mobile Police officers assigned to VIPs on April 24, 2025..
