President Muhammadu Buhari may have yielded to the calls by Nigerians to effect change in the top hierarchy of the Nigeria Police Force as indication pointed out last night that an Assistant Inspector General of the Police, Abubakar Adamu Mohammed has been picked as the new Inspector General of Police.
Mohammed hails from Nasarawa State, and was picked ahead of other senior officers in the Force.
The new IGP was born on November 9, 1961 and joined the Foce in 1986 with a degree in Geography.
Mohammed was once a director of peacekeeping operations and served as police commissioner in Enugu and was an AIG in charge of Zone 5
Before his appointment, Mohammed was a directing staff member at the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, near Jos, Plateau State.
His elevation might see several deputy inspectors-general retired from service, an exercise that would be reminiscent of how Mr Buhari sacked DIGs when he named Mr Idris as IG in June 2016.
Mr Idris, who retires tomorrow on age grounds, was an AIG when he was appointed.
Mr Idris’ controversial tenure was capped with widespread insinuations that he might remain in office beyond the period permitted by Nigerian laws.
Critics had accused Mr Buhari of scheming to retain him for the 2019 elections, a claim administration supporters rejected.
Still, security analysts said critics and supporters of the government alike would be relieved of the controversies that characterised Mr Idris’ tenure.
The former IG was accused of corruption and brutality, although he denied wrongdoing and regularly praised himself as a fine law enforcement officer.
The new IGP spent years of his career with Interpol, the international law enforcement outfit that has Nigeria as a prominent member. He was at the headquarters of the agency in Lyon, France, for several years.
Sources familiar with his career described him as “diligent and unruffled”
