5 things to know about Usman Baba, Nigeria’s new police boss

Usman Alkali Baba on Tuesday replaced Mohammed Adamu as Nigeria’s Inspector-General of Police (IGP) following an approval by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The new IGP’s appointment came with a lot of controversies as he was handed the position at a time when the immediate past IGP, Adamu travelled to Imo State in the aftermath of the violence that rocked the state on Monday.

Adamu’s tenure was controversially extended for three months on February 4 2021, but, he has only spent about two months.

The appointment of the new IGP, Baba was greeted with applause and criticism. While some experts described the appointment as apt and a step in the right direction others criticised it and condemned the appointment as lopsided due to his political zone.

Nigerians who took to social media to air their views on the appointment said they had expected that the new IGP would come from the South and as a result were displeased with President Buhari for not complying with the rules of the federal character.

Some experts who spoke to BusinessDay, however, said irrespective of the fact that the new IGP is again from the North; they are confident that he is competent enough and has the capacity and capability to deliver on his mandate in tackling the security challenges facing the country.

Africa’s most populous nation is battling with what experts have described as worsening security challenges including banditry, kidnapping, armed robbery among others.

The following are things to know about the new IGP who is expected to help resolve Nigerians security challenges.

March 1, 1963

The new Inspector-General of Police was born the same year Nigeria became a republic, March 1, 1963, in Gaidam, Yobe State. This means that Baba got the new appointment five days after his 58th birthday.

Education

Baba is a graduate of the Bayero University, Kano, and the University of Maiduguri. He holds a Teacher’s Grade II Certificate (TC II) from Teachers College, Potiskum, Yobe State.

He obtained a BA (ED) Political Science from Bayero University, Kano in 1985. Baba has a Masters Degree in Public Administration (MPA) obtained from the University of Maiduguri, Borno State in 1997. He also holds a Teacher’s Grade II Certificate (TC II) from Teachers College, Potiskum, Yobe State in 1980.

Career

Attending all the courses that are mandatory to be attended at various ranks including extra courses like investigation, insurgency and counter-terrorism and traffic management, Baba rose from the rank of a police officer to IGP. He enlisted in the Nigeria Police on 15th March 1988.

He served in various commands. He was in Kaduna as the Deputy Commissioner, Administration, in FCT as the Deputy Commissioner, Investigation, and was also in the staff college as a directing staff.

Also, he was in Ilorin as an Area Commander, the second-in-command in Ebonyi, Assistant Commissioner, CID in Kaduna, and before then he was DPO (Divisional Police Officer) in various places like Yola, Gombe, Kaduna, and Jos.

Until his appointment, Baba was the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, force criminal investigation department, police headquarters.

Recognitions

The new IGP is a fellow of the National Defence College and a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and has facilitated several professional workshops.

Expectations

The new police chief is expected to supersede his predecessor in taking decisions that will not only address security challenges but will rebuild the image of the Nigeria Police Force to gain public confidence.

Mike Ejiofor, former director, Department of State Services (DSS), while applauding the appointment condemned the manner the past IGP Adamu handled security challenges such as the ENDSARS protest and is handling the recent Imo State jailbreak, which according to him, is capable of escalating security tension.

He said the removal of Adamu at a time when he travelled to tackle the security situation in Imo was an indictment on the past IGP.

Ejiofor urged the new IGP to do better. He particularly wants Baba to focus on rebuilding the image of the Nigeria Police Force to regain public confidence and cooperation in terms of intelligence gathering.

Ben Okezie, a security analyst said the Nigeria police force was already a sinking ship in the hands of IGP Admau.

“We thank God the president has done the needful, the new IGP is qualified to look at all the positions he has held in the past. Nonetheless, we hope that he will be patriotic, unbiased, and he should avoid all forms of ethnicity and tribalism as he acts out his mandate”, he said.

Okezie also urged the new IGP to decentralise police architecture and allow for state and community policing making the job of securing Nigerians much easier.

In the same vein, Lawrence Alobi, a former Commissioner of Police, FCT, wants the new IGP to develop a national strategy for policing. He also urged the new IGP to focus on training and reorientation of police personnel to enhance their capacity.