Prior to the off-season elections scheduled for Saturday, November 11, the Inspector-General of Police, Olukayode Egbetokun, has promised to redeploy the Imo State Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Barde, due to allegations of partisanship.
This announcement comes in the wake of demands for the reassignment of Commissioner Barde by various groups, including the Nigerian Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress, Labour Party, and Civil Society Organizations.
Egbetokun revealed this development during a televised program titled “Peoples Town Hall On Election Security,” which was broadcast on Channels Television and monitored by our correspondent on Sunday night.
Egbetokun stated, “We are aware of the allegations against the Commissioner of Police in Imo. Prior to the elections, we will be replacing the CP. This is not to imply that the CP has been found guilty. However, for the sake of impartiality, we are reassigning the Commissioner of Police in Imo State.”
It should be noted that following the assault on the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Joe Ajaero, in Owerri, the capital of Imo State, the organized labor issued a five-day ultimatum for the redeployment of the state Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Barde.
In the aftermath of the incident, which provoked significant public outcry, the NLC and TUC accused the Imo CP of complicity in the attack and threatened to give the Federal Government a five-day ultimatum to replace him.