Former chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC), Perry Osayande, has died at the age of 88.
Osayande, who would have turned 89 on Monday, passed away in the early hours of Sunday in a hospital in Benin City, Edo state.
His death was confirmed by Fatai Owoseni, a retired Commissioner of Police.
Osayande served as PSC chairman from 2008 to 2013, during which the commission’s headquarters in Abuja was built.
Owoseni wrote: “A big and mighty iroko tree has fallen. Indeed, the quality of humanity has been diminished.
“The famous Nigerian super cop, DIG Parry Osayande (rtd), has gone into eternal rest. Farewell, Baba.”
He described Osayande as “blunt, transparent to a fault, exceptionally brilliant, and operationally sound,” noting that his courage to speak truth to power eventually cost him his police career.
Born into the Benin royal family, Osayande rose to prominence as commissioner of police in Bendel state, where he led the team that arrested notorious armed robber Lawrence Anini in 1986.
He also played key roles in quelling religious riots in Bauchi and Kano states in 1990 and 1991, and later coordinated Nigeria’s police team in the UN peacekeeping mission in Namibia.
Osayande was honoured with national awards, including Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) and Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR).