IGP Egbetokun Recalls 11,566 Police Officers from VIP Security Duties

• The Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, says 11,566 police personnel have been withdrawn from VIP protection and redeployed to underserved communities, following President Bola Tinubu’s directive aimed at strengthening frontline security across the country.

The Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has confirmed that 11,566 police officers previously attached to VIPs have been withdrawn, in line with President Bola Tinubu’s order to realign national security priorities.

Speaking on Thursday during a strategic police conference in Abuja, Egbetokun said the affected personnel had already begun redeployment to underserved and vulnerable communities, where their presence is most urgently needed.

According to the IGP, the directive is not sentimental but a necessary response to Nigeria’s current security challenges.

“This action is a patriotic, forward-looking, and operationally prudent measure designed to strengthen our manpower capacity for critical frontline policing functions,” he said.

Egbetokun added that the decision reinforces the core mandate of the Police Force — protecting citizens, defending communities, and safeguarding public order, especially as insecurity continues to threaten several parts of the country.

He explained that repositioning officers from personalised VIP protection to wider public safety roles will improve police visibility, expand investigative response, fortify rural and township security, and support tactical containment of emerging threats.

The police chief also warned that the Force is aware of the risk of misinformation surrounding the withdrawal process.

“To guard against this, the Force will release detailed implementation modalities in due course,” he said, noting that clear timelines, safeguards, and accountability measures will be communicated first internally and later to the public.

Egbetokun stressed that the controlled rollout is necessary to prevent opportunistic actors from exploiting uncertainty, spreading falsehoods, or impersonating security authorities.

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President Tinubu had on Wednesday declared a nationwide security emergency amid rising cases of abductions and terrorist attacks. As part of the measures, he ordered the withdrawal of police officers attached to VIPs and directed that those affected undergo “crash training” for redeployment to high-risk areas.

Tinubu also authorised the use of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) camps as temporary training depots to fast-track recruitment into the armed forces and the police.