By Osaro Shuaibu
The last is yet to be heard of the power play over the decision of the Commissioner of Police, Edo State Command, Mr. Haliru Gwandu Abukar, to disregard a letter from the Police Service Commission that ordered him out of the state.
Abukar’s defiance is said to be enjoying the backing of powers far above those of the Police Service Commission.
Sources said that what used to be a cold, subterranean war between the office of the Inspector General of Police, IGP and the Police Service Commission, PSC, may have spilled into the open after Mike Okiro, chairman of the PSC was reportedly prevented from seeing President Mohammadu Buhari over controversy trailing the refusal of some Commissioners of Police, CP, to go on redeployment at the alleged promptings of Ibrahim Idris.
In the main, the refusal of Abukar, CP, Edo State, to proceed on transfer to allow his successor to take office is the latest source of disagreement between both men and for which Okiro has again sought to see the President.
The PSC chairman was denied access to the president at the office by his Chief of Staff. As sources put it, the latest rebuff wouldn’t be the first attempt.
An insider at the PSC, who spoke on the matter, said that Okiro’s renewed request to see President Buhari was after Abukar allegedly rebuffed his transfer to Bauchi State. The transfer saga has since sparked outrage in Benin and Abuja with civil society organsations, on Monday, picketing the police headquarters, Abuja, and the National Assembly.
According to the insider in the PSC, Okiro, a former IGP, had previously booked appointment to see the president, ostensibly to brief him on the findings of an investigative panel on recent police posting controversies, but hadn’t been scheduled to see the president. “The request ended at the office of the chief of staff, headed by Abba Kyari, in the Presidency. We don’t hear anything from the office again about the request,†the insider said.
“Events after protest by some civil society groups over refusal of Abukar to deploy to his new station have again prompted the chairman to make another request to see the president. Like the previous instance, things are not looking too good, because we have it on authority that Idris has been blocking the chairman’s effort to brief the Presidency, first hand on the matter,†stated the informer.
Okiro and Idris don’t see eye to eye, as a result of which both men, as reported, have not collaborated on any police matter since the coming into office of the IG. PSC recently concluded an investigation into a rash of controversial promotions and transfers done by the IGP. Idris in turn has stood in the way of some of PSC’s statutory transfer of senior officers.
By the Act setting up PSC, the commission is empowered to carry out such routine transfers of CPs. Its power however falls short of regulating actions of the IG, a clause in the PSC Act police sources say Idris is basing his recent actions on. “Since the IGP is not subordinate to the PSC, but to the President, it follows that his directives to his CPs cannot be challenged by the PSC,†explained a state CP, who asked not be mentioned in name. Okiro is said to be worried over repeated pattern in CPs refusing transfers, especially with the coming of IG Idris.
In July, Abukar, along with other CPs like Fatai Owoseni, formerly of Lagos State, Garba Umar, formerly of Bayelsa were all redeployed. Owoseni, initially, was belligerent and wouldn’t give way to Edgar Omohinmi, his successor, claiming that there hadn’t been signal from the IGP. Though the matter was smoothened after Lagos state governor, Akinwumi Abode impressed it firmly on police hierarchy in Abuja that Owoseni’s days were over in Lagos. While Owoseni and Umar have since moved to their new stations, Abukar has refused to budge, also citing directives from the IGP, as alleged.
The state governor, Godwin Obaseki, as gathered, has not been too impressed with the turnout of the whole matter which has since sparked outrage in Benin. Obaseki, reportedly, was in Abuja to see National Security Adviser, NSA, Maj. Gen. Babagana Monguno on the matter.
