Don’t extend IGP’s tenure, Kano lawyer tells Buhari

According to the legal practitioner, no existing laws in the country justify such an extension. Jamilu’s outburst came amidst speculations that President Buhari is planning to extend the tenure of the Inspector General of Police in order to secure next month’s poll. Jamilu described the proposed moves, as unconstitutional. ”The Civil Service rules give these orders, whichever comes first, so even if he attains 35 years in service first, he is going to retire from service, even if he has not attained 60 years. If he attains 60 years before putting in 35 years in service, he has to retire. There is no place in the constitution, where the President derives such powers to extend the IGP’s tenure because as a public servant, he is being covered by the Public Service rules.” However, a Professor of Political Science in Bayero University Kano, Kamilu Sani Fagge, noted that an extension of the IG’s tenure would have no significant political implication in the forthcoming election. ”If somebody has the intention to use a Police officer to rig election, it would have been easier and better to get a new person and put him on probation, so that he or she has to prove himself for the next appointment. “I don’t think, extending the IG’s tenure will have any political implication. On the contrary, if a vacuum is created, we may likely have more problems than solving it!”]]>