President Bola Tinubu has directed the withdrawal of police personnel assigned to protect Very Important Persons (VIPs) across the country, ordering that they be redeployed to core policing duties as part of sweeping measures to strengthen national security.
The decision followed an extended security meeting held on Sunday at the State House, Abuja, with the nation’s top defence and intelligence chiefs in attendance.
In a statement posted on his verified X account, @OfficialABAT, the President said he was receiving “continuous briefings” and taking “decisive actions to stabilise the affected areas and protect our citizens.”
He wrote:
“I am currently in an extended security meeting with heads of our defence and intelligence apparatus including the Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Army Staff, Inspector-General of Police, Director-General of the DSS, at the State House.
“We are reviewing the latest reports and taking decisive actions to stabilise the affected areas and protect our citizens… As President, I am fully committed to the security of all Nigerians. Those who threaten the peace and security of our nation will face the full weight of the law. Nigeria will prevail.”
Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga later confirmed that police officers attached to VIPs are to be withdrawn and replaced—where needed—by armed personnel from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC). The move, he said, is intended to address the shortage of police in many communities, especially in remote areas.
In response to rising insecurity and the need for wider police presence nationwide, President Tinubu also approved the recruitment of 30,000 new police officers. The federal government, he added, is partnering with states to upgrade and expand police training facilities across the country.
Sunday’s security meeting was attended by the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Waidi Shaibu; Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke; Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun; and Director-General of the Department of State Services, Tosin Adeola Ajayi.
