A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Bode George, intervened in the ongoing controversy over the President’s decision to retain the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun.
In an interview with Sunday PUNCH, George, who once chaired the PDP Board of Trustees, maintained that although the President had the constitutional authority to appoint or remove service chiefs, the persistent insecurity in the country could only be effectively tackled through the establishment of state police.
He said, “I don’t know if retaining the IG has some ethnic connotations. There are two evils the British left for us in this country: religious and tribal bigotry. Anything we do in this country, people will see it through the lenses of ethnicity and religion.”
George explained that, as Commander-in-Chief, the President had the authority to make such appointments, noting that the selection of the new service chiefs appeared to be fairly distributed across the geopolitical zones.
The retired Navy Commodore observed that recent restructuring within the police hierarchy might have saved Inspector-General Kayode Egbetokun from being affected by the shake-up that saw other service chiefs removed.
He attributed the major problem within the military to what he described as a loss of professionalism, which, according to him, stemmed from the institution’s involvement in politics decades ago.
He lamented that the unity and camaraderie that once defined the armed forces had eroded, as officers now viewed one another with envy instead of brotherhood.
George stressed the need to restore professionalism in the military and argued that the persistent failure to curb insurgency was linked to the absence of state police.
He maintained that policing should be local, explaining that with state police, recruits would come from their communities, understand the local language and culture, and be better equipped to tackle crime effectively. View, More,
Leave a Reply