Former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Oyo State, Mutalubi Adebayo, SAN, has insisted that senators do not require police escorts, stressing that only judges should be exempted from President Bola Tinubu’s directive withdrawing police personnel from Very Important Persons.
Adebayo made this assertion while reacting to the President’s recent order directing the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to withdraw police officers attached to VIPs and redeploy them to areas where they are more needed, particularly in the fight against terrorism.
Speaking on Arise News, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) argued that senators who feel unsafe should seek protection from private security firms rather than rely on public police officers.
“Senators should apply for private guards if at all they feel they need security,” he said.
Adebayo maintained that the work of lawmakers cannot be equated with that of judges, insisting that judges occupy a unique position that makes police protection compulsory.
“Senators can’t compare their jobs with that of judges. Some civil servants need escorts, even ministers need,” he said.
“Judges are not VIPs. They are even a special class of people. They’re more than VIPs. They need police escort as a matter of duty. It is very compulsory for judges to get police escorts considering the kind of job they do. It won’t be good even for society.”
‘Senators Taking It Too Far’
The former Attorney General also criticised the reaction of some lawmakers to the policy, describing the opposition as excessive and unnecessary.
Referring specifically to Senator Abdul Ningi, Adebayo said, “To me, I’ll say that Senator Abdul Ningi is taking the matter too far. I’ll say he’s a clown. What are they doing in the Senate to need police escorts?”
“What are they doing there? Cracking jokes… making cheap money. They don’t need police escorts. But they can apply for private security guards from private companies. Do they want to compare their job with that of judges?” he queried.
Naijaonpoint reports that President Tinubu had earlier directed the Inspector-General of Police to withdraw police officers attached to VIPs across the country.
The President ordered that the affected personnel be redeployed to areas where they would be more useful, especially in strengthening internal security and combating terrorism.
However, following the directive, some senators have raised concerns, lamenting that the withdrawal of police escorts could expose them to security risks and endanger their lives.