By Onyeanya Ebere Immaculata
More than 100,000 officers of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), are assigned to protect politicians and other VIPs instead of the general public, according to a new report by the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA).
The November 2025 report noted that out of an estimated 371,800 officers serving a population of 236.7 million, a large number are diverted to VIP duties, worsening insecurity nationwide.
It blamed manpower shortages, corruption, and poor resources for slow emergency responses and weak community policing, adding that weak accountability systems have encouraged misconduct such as extortion and abuse of power.
Despite directives by the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to withdraw Mobile Police officers from VIP duties, the EUAA said many still serve private interests.
Presidential aide Hadiza Bala-Usman also criticized the practice, urging a review of the Police Act to allow private security firms to handle elite protection so that police officers can focus on national security.
