A security consultant and retired US-trained deputy sheriff, Dr John Egbo, has urged President Bola Tinubu to introduce a 90-day transition period before withdrawing police escorts from politically exposed persons and other high-risk individuals.
Egbo warned that ending VIP protection abruptly, without a structured handover, could expose senior public officials and business leaders to avoidable risks at a time of heightened security concerns across the country.
He argued that a more workable approach would be for the federal government to fast-track the training, certification and licensing of armed private security personnel who can lawfully assume close-protection duties. Such a model, he noted, is consistent with practice in the United States and other advanced democracies where private firms, rather than state police, routinely provide personal security for private citizens.
Egbo also cautioned against granting the president sole discretion over who qualifies for police escorts, saying it could fuel accusations of political interference in an already sensitive political climate. A transparent, rules-based framework, he said, would offer “far greater credibility”.
He added that standardising police VIP escorts to one or two officers would reduce excessive deployments and free up personnel for core policing duties. Properly structured units, he said, could still enhance visibility and operate as mobile patrols in areas with limited coverage.
With the Christmas season approaching and travel expected to rise, Egbo warned that removing protection for high-risk individuals could undermine the police’s mandate to safeguard life and property.
He concluded that a clearer institutional policy supported by regulated private security and a more disciplined escort system would provide a more sustainable path for Nigeria’s evolving security landscape.