Several senior officers of the Nigeria Police Force, including Deputy Inspector-General Frank Mba, may be forced into retirement following the appointment of Olatunji Disu as acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP), President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 23rd appointee to the position.
Disu, recently promoted to Assistant Inspector General of Police, was posted two weeks ago to head the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) Annexe in Alagbon, Lagos. His appointment is expected to trigger a leadership transition affecting multiple Deputy Inspectors-General (DIGs) across the force.
Mba currently serves as Deputy Inspector-General in charge of the Department of Training and Development at the Force Headquarters in Abuja. He is reportedly among at least four senior DIGs likely to exit the force as part of the customary reshuffle that accompanies a new IGP.
It is standard practice in the Nigeria Police Force for incoming IGPs to restructure top leadership, particularly among DIGs senior in rank or those who joined the force before the new appointee. However, uncertainty remains over whether recently promoted DIGs such as Fayoade Adegoke Mustapha, Funsho Adegboye, and Mohammed Adamu Dankwara will also retire alongside Egbetokun.
An internal list circulating within the force indicates several key officers who could be affected by the transition. They include:
Yahaya S. Abubakar, DIG in charge of Finance and Administration
Frank Mba, overseeing Training and Development
Adebola Hamzat, Head of Logistics and Supply
Adebowale Williams, supervising Information and Communication Technology
Sadiq Idris Abubakar, leading the Force Criminal Investigations Department
Ben Nebolisa Okolo, heading the Force Intelligence Department
Basil O. Idegwu, responsible for Research and Planning
While the list identifies the officers and their roles, police authorities have yet to officially confirm the timing or details of retirements or redeployments linked to the leadership change.
Sources familiar with the force’s internal dynamics noted that several of the officers, including Disu and Mba, were coursemates.
The source added that the officers all joined the police in 1992, but through different entry cadres. “Mba joined as a Cadet Inspector, while Disu and others entered as Assistant Superintendents of Police. Those who joined as ASPs usually advance faster than Cadet Inspectors,” the source said.
It is also understood that even the three newly promoted DIGs could retire between June and July due to age requirements. In the police, retirement occurs either upon reaching 60 years of age or completing 35 years of service, similar to other civil service positions.