The Federal Government has announced plans to stop Very Important Persons (VIPs) from using police and anti-terror squads as personal escorts, insisting that public safety must come first.
Hadiza Bala-Usman, Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordination, said on Thursday that security operatives will no longer be diverted from crime-fighting to guard politicians and business moguls.
“Whoever wants armed escorts should hire a licensed private security company,” she declared at the Ministry of Interior’s retreat in Abuja.
The government is moving to amend the Private Guard Companies Act to empower private firms to take over VIP protection. Retired senior police officers are expected to be integrated into the new structure.
Officials say the reform will free the police to focus on terrorism, banditry, and community safety—ending a system critics say rewards privilege at the expense of ordinary Nigerians.