There has been a surge in demand for the services of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Nigerian Correctional Service and private security firms after President Bola Tinubu ordered the withdrawal of police escorts from VIPs. The directive, aimed at boosting police presence in communities, has already seen Inspector General Kayode Egbetokun recall more than 11,500 escort officers nationwide.
Findings across states show many affected politicians and high‑profile figures are now making frantic moves to secure alternative armed protection. Senior NSCDC officers in Abuja and Enugu confirmed they have been inundated with calls and formal applications from VIPs requesting personnel for home and personal security, even as the corps struggles with limited manpower and multiple national assignments.
Private security companies are also reporting a spike in enquiries but say they lack enough trained guards to meet sudden demand. In Nasarawa, escorts have reportedly been withdrawn from most former and serving lawmakers, prompting some to cancel public engagements and remain indoors until they secure new arrangements with NSCDC or private outfits.
States are simultaneously ramping up their own security structures. Ondo Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa has approved the recruitment of 500 new operatives into the Amotekun Corps, following a Southern governors’ meeting that again pressed for the creation of state police to tackle banditry and other violent crimes.
Minister of Interior Olubunmi Tunji‑Ojo said paramilitary agencies under his ministry, including NSCDC and the Federal Fire Service, are retooling to implement the president’s security directives “to the letter.” NSCDC sources, however, stressed that detailed guidelines are still being worked out on how far the corps can go in supplying personnel for VIP protection.
Senator Ali Ndume has strongly backed Tinubu’s order and called for its strict enforcement in the National Assembly. He described the number of police officers attached to lawmakers, ministers and even their spouses and children as excessive and “insulting” in a country where ordinary citizens lack basic protection.
Ndume recounted visiting a colleague who had more than 10 policemen assigned to him, arguing that better funding and deployment to secure Abuja and other cities would reduce the need for heavy VIP convoys. He disclosed that although security agencies once tried to attach three officers to him, he insisted on keeping only one orderly for reasons of accountability.
Former DMI officer and security consultant Captain Umar Babangida Aliyu (rtd) said Nigeria’s elites deserve “no pity” over the withdrawal of escorts. He accused political leaders and beneficiaries of security votes of failing for years to replicate the effective public‑safety systems they enjoy abroad, and urged strict, loophole‑free enforcement of the new rules.
Inspector General Egbetokun has likewise insisted the recall is not punitive or political, but part of a shift toward intelligence‑led policing and stronger rapid‑response capabilities across rural and urban areas. The Police also publicly disowned a viral memo claiming that officers had been withdrawn from figures such as Atiku Abubakar, Nyesom Wike, former First Lady Aisha Buhari and the Chief Justice, saying no such blanket directive was issued.
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