The Presidency has urged Nigerians to play an active role in monitoring compliance with President Bola Tinubu’s directive to withdraw police escorts from VIPs nationwide.
The call was made by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Public Communication, Daniel Bwala, during an interview on TVC on Sunday. He emphasised that public cooperation is essential to the policy’s success, which aims to redirect police personnel to core law-enforcement duties.
Bwala encouraged citizens to document and report any individual still using police escorts in violation of the President’s order.
“If you identify a celebrity, a private sector person, or any individual who has gone against the executive order of the president, as much as you can, capture evidence, whether a photograph or video,” he said.
He clarified, however, that the directive does not apply to all government officials. Certain critical officeholders will still be entitled to security protection—but not necessarily from the Nigeria Police Force.
“The order of the president to withdraw police from VIPs is not all-encompassing. There are critical people in government who will still have one form of security or another,” Bwala explained.
He added that protection for officials who merit security coverage may instead be provided by other agencies such as the State Security Service (SSS) or the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.
“It could be SSS, Civil Defence, and not the police who will be there to help you. But police have no business being with you,” he stated.
The move reflects the Tinubu administration’s renewed push to strengthen national security by ensuring a more effective deployment of police personnel. The President has repeatedly stressed the need for a police force focused on public safety rather than guarding private individuals.
New Daily Prime previously reported that the President directed the withdrawal of police officers attached to VIPs nationwide, ordering their redeployment to regular policing roles.
Analysts say the policy’s success will depend mainly on enforcement and public reporting, as the practice of assigning police escorts to influential individuals has been entrenched for decades.