Goodluck Gives Order For Sack Of Policemen

President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday directed the chairman of the Police Service Commission Mike Okiro to purge the Nigeria Police Force of top officers who do not merit their ranks.

Jonathan gave the directive at the State House in Abuja after swearing in Okiro as the new chairman of the Police Service Commission and five other members including Yakubu Mohammed, Justice Olufunmilola Adekeye, Aisha Tukur, Comfort Obi and Tonye Anyim.

Official figure of the Nigeria Police Force stands at 375, 000 but those to be affected by the presidential directive are those on the ranks of Assistant Commissioner and above.

The president declared that it is preferable to have inadequate manpower in the police force than to have ‘viruses and all kinds of characters’ there.

He noted that the performances of the police, military and paramilitary officers were abysmal because competence and merit were being compromised in promoting them.

“And that is one area I believe you will go into. People who are promoted to assistant police commissioner and above must merit the rank. If you don’t merit the rank you should be retired from the service because it is better for you not to have enough manpower than for you to have viruses and all kinds of characters in the police force,” the president said.

President Jonathan disclosed that when the Force Headquarters was bombed in 2011, he was advised to sack all the police officers working there from the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police and above for ineptitude.

The president said he did not heed the advice, but he believed that apart from indiscipline in the force, top police officers were being promoted undeservedly.

“When the Police Headquarters was bombed, some people came to me and say Mr. President, sack all police officers working in that place from Assistant Commissioner of Police and above. I did not sack any because of that incident, but that was the advice I got,” he revealed.

He said he was told that if he swept the force that way, subsequent officers that would be posted there would sit up.

“How could the police allow their headquarters to be bombed by a very local group called Boko Haram?” the President querried.

After the bombing of the headquarters, then Inspector General Hafiz Ringim and six DIGs were retired.