The Police Service Commission (PSC) has halted the promotion of 112 senior police officers in the Nigeria Police Force.
This was disclosed in a statement issued by Ikechukwu Ani, the PSC spokesperson, on Friday.
The decision was reached at the end of the commission’s ninth Plenary meeting in Abuja on Monday and Tuesday, presided over by the PSC Chairman, Musiliu Smith.
According to the statement, the promotion of the officers will only be approved when Mohammed Adamu, the Inspector-General of Police, provide the Presidential approval on the creation of new police zonal commands.
The statement read: “The commission stood down the promotions of 112 senior police officers for failure of the Inspector-General of Police to comply with the directive of the commission to attach the Presidential approval for the creation of additional police zonal commands and departments from where the vacancies for the recommended officers were harvested.
“The commission stood down the promotion of 13 CPs, eight DCPs and 91 Chief Superintendents of Police.”
The PSC, however, promoted Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Sanusi Lemu to Deputy Inspector General of Police, to replace retired DIG Abdulmajid Ali, representing the North Central region.
It also approved the promotion of Commissioner of Police, Mustapha Dandaura, former CP Anambra and Rivers States, to the substantive rank of AIG.
Also promoted were 167 Superintendents of Police to Chief Superintendent, three Deputy Superintendents of Police to Superintendent, two Assistant Superintendents of Police to Deputy Superintendent and four Inspectors to Assistant Superintendent.
The commission also confirmed the acting appointments of 60 senior officers, including three Commissioners of Police and four Deputy Commissioners.
IGP Adamu had in May announced the establishment of five zonal commands, including Ondo/Ekiti command with headquarters at Akure, Ondo State; Enugu/Anambra/Ebonyi Command with headquarters in Ukpo-Dunukofia in Anambra State.
Others are Bayelsa/Rivers command with headquarters in Yenogoa, Bayelsa State;
Katsina,/Kaduna command with headquarters in Katsina; Yobe/Borno command with headquarters in Maiduguri, Borno State.
The Force Intelligence Bureau was also excised from the FCID to become a full-fledged department to be headed by a DIG.
