Scandal Rocks Delta Police Command, Estranged CP Allegedly ‘Induced’ Transfer Of 62 Southern Officers To Northern Nigeria In Anger

Facts have emerged on how the Delta State Police Commissioner. Mr. Hafiz Inuwa allegedly connived with some elements at the Force Headquarters to effect redeployment of 62 officers – all Southern in his command to the northern part of the country.

BIGPEN authoritatively gathered that the mass redeployment in the state police command was induced following unsettled discrepancies between the Commissioner of Police and some top hierarchy officers in the command.

The police boss, dependable sources said has been having a running battle with top echelon of the command, a development which last month led to the sudden redeployment of one of high ranking officer in the command, a Deputy Commissioner of Police.

BIGPEN learnt from a top security source that the alleged unsettled rift also led to the sudden transfer of an Assistant Commissioner of Police at the command prior to the recent mass transfer.

Sources alleged that the crisis at the command prior to the controversial transfer, is unconnected to the highhandedness and autocratic nature of the police chief.

“The entire transfer didn’t follow due process. Almost everything was done through a phone call he made to a ‘big man’ in the headquarters. He didn’t follow due process, he knows if he do, almost everyone, affected officer would know of it through the memo. But no official memo was done. The man just called Abuja complaining about some of the officers whom he perceived as his antagonist and pushed for their immediate transfer with flimsy excuses that it was a routine transfer.

“To tell you how desperate the CP went with this lopsided ethnic cleansing transfer, he went through the road all the way to Abuja by himself to submit the list of officers risking his own life under the lockdown period.

“It was a deliberate attempt to flush out police officers from the Southern extraction from the command to various part of the North to make way for his kinsmen to takeover the entire command.

“Not less than 64 officers from the rank of CSPs/SP were affected. The transfer signal dated 30th April 2020 was signed, released, and mandating the affected to report on or before 29th May 2020 or face sanction.

“I can tell you the commissioner personally took by hand to Abuja the list of officers, thus violating the lockdown directive, just to chase out subordinate officers who are mainly of south south/East.What else could be reason for this kind of strange mass transfer from one command if not ethnic cleansing and domineering agenda.

“Shockingly, no name from northern extraction made the list underscoring the ill motive behind the exercise. All northern officers of equivalent rank have choice positions, while southerns are left with leftovers. Grade ‘A’ Area Commands like Warri/Sapele/Asaba/ Ughelli are exclusive reserve for the northern officers.

“The man problem is that he lacks good human management. He has frosty relationship with his management team. Do you know he unceremoniously transferred DC SCID to Bayelsa state and ACP Ngozi Ezeabata to Calabar respectively to show he was out to undo Southerners?

“Officers and men have low moral in the command because of the CP autocratic way of management. The Source said that the command is currently flooded with new personnel who were deployed from the North”.

In a terse message, a concern Deltan who gave his name as Onos Ejiro, said it was out rightly wrong for the CP to put his officers at risk of moving to the new command at a time the entire world is battling COVID- 19.

He, however, called on the National Assembly, Human Right organizations, the Inspector General Of Police, Police Service Commission, and States House of Assemblies to intervene in the crisis rocking the state Police Command and save the career of the officers whom according to him were not give 28 days in lieu of accommodation.

The transfer circular seen by BIGPEN in Abuja and signed by Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) Alkali Baba Usman, a former police commissioner in Delta State reads, “The Inspector-General of Police has ordered the transfer of the following officers from Delta State Command to commands indicated against their names.

“The IGP has notice flagrant disregard to lawful orders exhibited by officers on transfer to commands/formations. Officers who intentionally decide not to report on or before 29th May, 2020 will be queried.”

Meanwhile, National Vice President Committee for the Defense of Human Right (CDHR), Prince Taiga, has threatened to challenge in court the transfer of about 62 senior officers from the South to the northern part of the country.

CDHR also gave the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, seven days to reverse the transfer or face mass protest and court action, saying that the redeployment of DPOs and other heads of police units mostly of southern extraction to northern part of the country was questionable and unconstitutional.

He said, “We don’t understand what the IGP is trying to do, is he trying to bring in Boko-Haram or herdsmen to the South-South? We have not witnessed anything like this for the past 20 years. This is one-sided transfer. The officers that were transferred were basically from the southern, eastern and western part of the country. The transfer did not cut across the six zones and that transfer was made based on self interest.

“We are not against redeployment but anything worth doing should be well done. This redeployment is unacceptable. It is one-sided. IGP should make the redeployment cut across the six geo-political zone. We are giving the Inspector General of Police, Muhammad Adamu, seven days to reverse the transfer or there will be mass protest.

But when contact, the State Commissioner of Police, Hafiz Inuwa, dismissed all allegation surrounding the transfer in a telephone conversation with one of our correspondent, saying it is an internal administrative matter that is not meant for the consumption of the public.

He said, “This is an internal administrative matter and it is not meant for the consumption of the public. It is an organisation matter. It is very unfortunate that matters like this will be tribalised.

“It’s a routine and administrative exercise and whosoever said those transferred were replaced with officers from Northern Nigeria, I challenge anyone to come with such list of replacements”.