In a major policy shift aimed at addressing the country’s worsening security crisis, the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has declared that any police officer found providing escort or personal protection to Very Important Persons (VIPs) will be arrested on the spot and treated as being on “illegal duty.” The stern warning, described as non-negotiable, comes directly from the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, and is being enforced with immediate effect across the country.
The Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi’s counterpart in Lagos, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, made the disclosure during an appearance on Channels Television’s breakfast programme on Tuesday, December 2, 2025. Hundeyin left no one in doubt that the directive is already in full swing, revealing that every single police officer previously attached to politicians, business moguls, traditional rulers, and other high-profile individuals has been recalled to regular policing duties.
“The enforcement is on full throttle,” Hundeyin stated emphatically. “The IGP has given a clear and unambiguous directive: any police officer found escorting VIPs should be arrested immediately because, without mincing words, that officer is on illegal duty. Every one of them has been recalled — no exceptions.”
To demonstrate how seriously the police high command is taking the order, Hundeyin revealed that the Inspector-General personally instructed the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Special Protection Unit (SPU) to deploy men to the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja with standing orders to arrest any uniformed officer seen performing VIP escort duties. The same directive was issued to the Commissioner of Police in Lagos State for the Murtala Muhammed International Airport and other entry/exit points in the state.
“That is how serious we are about this policy,” the police spokesman stressed. “The IGP said, ‘Go to the airport, station your men there, and anyone you see escorting a VIP, arrest that officer.’ It is happening in Abuja, it is happening in Lagos, and it is happening nationwide.”
The sweeping directive stems directly from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s order that all police personnel attached to private individuals and non-essential VIPs be immediately withdrawn and redeployed to frontline policing duties. With kidnapping, armed robbery, banditry, and other violent crimes reaching alarming levels across virtually every region of Nigeria, the President insisted that policemen can no longer be used as status symbols by the elite while ordinary citizens are left vulnerable.
Hundeyin was quick to clarify that the presidential directive is “absolute” and not subject to negotiation or “the highest bidder” — an apparent jab at the long-standing practice where wealthy and influential Nigerians allegedly paid huge sums — officially or under the table — to retain police escorts and orderlies long after their statutory entitlements expired.
For years, the attachment of policemen to politicians, business tycoons, religious leaders, and even senior civil servants has been a contentious issue in Nigeria. Successive Inspectors-General of Police have issued similar withdrawal orders, only for the practice to resume quietly once public attention shifted. Mobile Police units (MOPOL), Counter-Terrorism Unit (CTU) personnel, and regular constables have routinely been seen in convoys of private citizens, often performing menial tasks completely unrelated to law enforcement.
Critics have repeatedly argued that the VIP escort syndrome is one of the reasons the Nigeria Police remains critically understaffed on the streets. With an estimated police-to-citizen ratio of about 1:650 — far below the United Nations’ recommended 1:450 — thousands of officers tied down guarding private residences and trailing VIP convoys represent manpower that could otherwise be combating rampant insecurity.
By personally backing the latest withdrawal order and threatening arrests for non-compliance, President Tinubu and IGP Egbetokun appear determined to break the cycle once and for all. The decision to station dedicated teams at airports — traditional flashpoints where VIPs arriving from abroad are often received with full police protocol — is seen as a deliberate move to send an unmistakable message: the era of using uniformed officers as private security guards is over.
While many Nigerians have applauded the move on social media and in public discourse, describing it as long overdue, there are whispers in some quarters that the policy may face resistance from powerful interests accustomed to the perks of office. Past attempts to withdraw police orderlies have sometimes seen influential figures allegedly using connections within the police hierarchy or even political pressure to have “their boys” quietly returned.
However, the current tone from the Force Headquarters suggests zero tolerance for sabotage. By criminalising VIP escort duties and ordering the arrest of erring officers, the IGP has removed the usual ambiguity that allowed commanders to look the other way. Officers now risk detention, disciplinary action, and possible dismissal if caught flouting the order.
As the Nigeria Police Force begins what it calls a “total redeployment” of personnel to core policing functions — patrol, crime prevention, intelligence gathering, and rapid response — citizens are watching closely to see whether the withdrawal will translate into improved security on the highways, in neighbourhoods, and in rural communities currently under the grip of criminals.
For now, the message from the top is clear: the Nigeria Police belongs to all Nigerians, not to a privileged few who can afford to “buy” protection while the masses are left defenceless.
