FOR a number of reasons, the removal of Mr Hafiz Ringim from office as the Inspector General of Police (IGP) could not have come as a surprise to close watchers of the Nigerian situation. There have been persistent calls for a complete overhaul of the entire security system in the wake of the Boko Haram menace to which the country's security apparatus appears to have found no answer.President Goodluck Jonathan's public statement that the religious fundamentalists have infiltrated the different arms of government, as well as the security agencies, confirmed the general suspicion that the violent sect has backers and sympathisers in critical positions. The escape of the alleged mastermind of the Christmas Day bomb blast at the St Theresa's Catholic Church, Madalla in Niger State, Kabir Umar a.k.a Kabir Sokoto, gave rise to a widespread expression of outrage. The circumstances in which the suspect escaped were questionable. The established relationship between Ringim and the police investigator, Zakari Biu ' whose acts of omission or commission, made the escape possible ' cast a great pall of doubt on the integrity and loyalty of the police under Ringim's watch.THE media captured Ringim's exit from office in different ways. Some called it a sack while some others reported it as a soft landing which is a euphemism for an order to proceed on terminal leave that ends up in retirement. What is clear and indisputable is that Ringim is the first major casualty of the failure to find a solution to the unceasing onslaught of the Boko Haram fanatics.Although Ringim is gone, the painful fact is that his departure from the scene will not make the Boko Haram problem to go away. His successor, Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar, sounded combative on assumption of office. He promised to confront Boko Haram with everything at his disposal.Since it is not the sole responsibility of the police to subdue Boko Haram, our fervent hope is that Abubakar's tenure will witness the much ' needed synergy among all security agencies so that the spate of killings and bombings can come to an end in no distant date.IN line with what is fast becoming the standard practice in the appointment of Nigeria's number one policeman, Abubakar was picked from the third tier of the police hierarchy. He was an Assistant Inspector-General and was in charge of Zone 12 of the Nigeria Police with headquarters in Bauchi. In his 33rd year of service, Abubakar is expected to bow out in two years time. With his appointment, his other six superior officers ' the deputyInspectors-General ' were relieved of their jobs. The government was said to have made wide consultations before arriving at the choice of Abubakar as the new IGP whose appointment is seen as the first step in the planned reorganisation and repositioning of the Nigeria police for a move effective performance.ABUBAKAR'S appointment has generated mixed reactions. He has been commended as a very effective operations man who has handled crisis situations in different parts of the country. The chairman of the Police Service Commission, Mr Parry Osayande, former IGP Mike Okiro and Oba Rilwan Akiolu of Lagos (also a retired police officer) were said to have expressed their preference for Abubakar. On the other hand, notable individuals, Christian bodies, political parties and civil society groups have expressed anger at his appointment and raised posers over his suitability for the top job.The leaders of the northern state chapters of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), the Lagos League of Political Parties, said they were disappointed at Abubakar's appointment. THE position of most of those opposed to his emergence as the new IGP is based on the Justice Niki Tobi panel report on the 2001 Jos Crisis.The panel which was set up by former Governor Joshua Dariye said inter alia: 'Religious fanatics should not be posted to head police commands. The panel recommends that for his ignoble role during the September 2001 crisis, which resulted in the loss of lives, the former Commissioner of Police, Plateau State, Alhaji M.D. Abubakar, be advised to retire from the Nigeria Police Force and in the event of his refusal to do so, he should be dismissed from the service'.' CAN likened Abubakar's appointment to 'a licence given to him by President Goodluck Jonathan to unleash terror on Christians'.The member representing Jos-South/Jos-East in the House of Representatives, Mr Bitrus Kaze, said 'those who have mentored terrorism in Nigeria are being asked to lead the police against the same terrorism'.THE new IGP has been highly recommended, just as he has been adjudged totally unfit for the job. Unless the unexpected happens, he will be at the helm in the management of the Nigeria Police for the next two years and one month. He has promised to fight crime ' be it armed robbery or terrorism.He has promised to tackle corruption in the police. He has promised that his administration will be different from any other one. Like those before him, he has said that he will take the police to a befitting pedestal. The next 25 months will tell what Mohammed Abubakar will be remembered for as the helmsmen of the Nigeria Police.
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