The Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, says no fewer than 11,566 police officers attached to Very Important Persons (VIPs) have been withdrawn as directed by the President a few days ago.

The top cop also disclosed that officers have been redeployed to strategic frontline locations to protect vulnerable communities across the country.

Daily Trust reports that President Bola Tinubu, on Sunday, directed the withdrawal of police officers from VIP security duties and ordered that the personnel be reassigned to core policing functions.

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The directive followed a security meeting held in Abuja with service chiefs and the Director-General of the Department of State Services.

Speaking at Force Headquarters, Abuja, on Thursday, when he met with senior police officers on the rank of commissioners, Egbetokun said the withdrawn officers would be made to face core police duties.

He said the decision to recall officers from VIP security duties was not driven by sentiment, but by the urgent need to channel manpower to areas where public safety demands are highest.

According to him, the move aligns with the core mandate of the Nigeria Police Force, which is the protection of citizens, communities, and public order, saying a total of 11,566 personnel withdrawn from VIPs had been redeployed.

“In line with the President’s directive, we have withdrawn a total of 11,566 personnel from VIP protection. These officers are being redeployed to critical policing duties immediately,” he said.

The IGP explained that the withdrawal would enable the police to expand manpower deployment for rural and township security, large-scale population protection, intensified patrols, intelligence-led operations, and rapid response to emerging threats.

He warned that the implementation of the VIP withdrawal directive would be carefully managed to prevent misinformation, impersonation, or exploitation by criminal elements. Detailed guidelines, he said, would be released soon.

“The withdrawal is not a retreat from responsibility, but a reclamation of it,” Egbetokun added.

He added that recent security incidents — including abductions in Kwara, Kebbi and Niger states — have reinforced the need to reposition the force and strengthen visibility and deterrence across the country.

Egbetokun noted that although security agencies responded swiftly to the recent attacks, the incidents created the impression in some quarters that the police were not doing enough.

“We may not be doing enough, but it is not that we are not working. We are actually doing something. But as leaders, we must hold ourselves to a higher standard,” he said.

The IGP disclosed that the force had achieved notable operational successes in recent weeks, including the arrest of 8,202 suspects for various offences and the rescue of 232 kidnapped victims.

Egbetokun said, “The Nigeria police force has achieved multiple operational outcomes across strategic formations and tactical response structures, including a total of 8,202 suspects who were arrested for various offences.

“Out of these are 451 armed robbery suspects, 356 kidnapping suspects, 534 murder suspects, 129 murders with culpable homicide suspects, 173 persons for unlawful possession of firearms, 312 suspected rapists, 282 suspected courtiers who were also arrested, 6,094 6,095 and 95 suspected persons who were arrested for other serious offences.”

He also listed the recovery of 249 firearms, nearly 21,000 rounds of ammunition, and 238 vehicles.

Egbetokun said the police were adopting stronger intelligence frameworks, deeper community engagement, and enhanced inter-agency collaboration to outmanoeuvre criminals.

Meanwhile, Senator Ali Ndume, the former Chief Whip of the Senate and lawmaker representing Borno South, has expressed concern that senators continue to move around with large numbers of police escorts despite President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive for security agencies to withdraw personnel attached to Very Important Persons (VIPs).

Ndume, who spoke during a live interview on Channels Television on Thursday night, said the continued deployment of policemen to serve individual lawmakers undermines the government’s efforts to strengthen national security. 

He said the situation was not only wasteful but had also deprived communities and security formations of much-needed manpower at a time insecurity remains a national challenge.