IGP Usman Alkali Baba Historic Courtesy Visit To Newly Sworn-in PSC Chair Arase
This post has already been read 337 times!
….Pledges Commitment to Better Working Relationship
The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, on Monday paid a historic courtesy visit to the newly sworn-in Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC), IGP Solomon Arase, (Rtd.), at his office, Federal Secretariat Complex, Central Business District, Abuja.
The IGP, who led his management team, congratulated the PSC Chair on his appointment and subsequent swearing-in, assuring him of the NPF’s full cooperation to achieve an enviable policing system.
The meeting which was at the instance of the IGP was geared at cementing the existing relationship between the NPF and the Commission for an improved working relationship. 
The PSC Chair while appreciating the IGP and the Force leadership for the thoughtful visit, assured that all necessary support will be deployed to ensure the Force is repositioned for better service delivery.
He similarly expressed optimism in the quest to build stronger ties, work out more areas of collaboration, and improve discipline within the ranks of the Force.
The Inspector-General of Police reiterated the commitment to engage with the PSC to strengthen the disciplinary mechanism of the Force and stimulate continuous Force Disciplinary Committee (FDC) meetings more frequently to dispense with matters of discipline amongst senior officers of the Force.
The IGP and the PSC Chair similarly visited the site of the new PSC office complex to ascertain the level of work towards its completion.
Rivalry Between Nigeria Police Force And Police Service Commission
There has been a dispute between the Nigeria Police Force and the Police Service Commission over who has powers to recruit police constables into the Force.
It is a disagreement expected to be resolved by the Supreme Court before the rivalry between the two bodies over the yearly recruitment exercise can be put to rest.
Trouble started in recent times when an advertisements by the PSC calling on interested applicants for recruitment of police constables went viral.
But in a swift reaction, the NPF issued a counter statement informing the public that the exercise was false, adding that it had not commenced any recruitment into the Force contrary to a publication by the PSC. 
Following the NPF’s reaction, the spokesman of the PSC confirmed that they had differences with the police with regards to the 2022 recruitment exercise.
Part 1 of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution (as amended) states that PSC “Shall be responsible for the appointment and promotion of persons to offices (other than the office of the Inspector-General of Police) in the Nigeria Police Force; dismiss and exercise disciplinary control over persons (other than the IG) and formulate policies and guidelines for the appointment, promotion, discipline and dismissal of officers of the Nigeria Police Force.”
On the other hand, Section 18(1) of the Nigeria Police Act 2020, which was assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari, states that: “The responsibility for the recruitment of recruit constables into the Nigeria Police Force and recruit cadets into the Nigeria Police Academy shall be the duty of the Inspector-General of Police.”
The dispute over the 2022 recruitment exercise not the first time the PSC and NPF would clash on the same issue.
Since 2018 when President Buhari gave a nod for the recruitment of 60,000 police constables (10,000 each year), only 10,000 men have been recruited in the last four years due solely to the same disagreement.
In view of the protracted rivalry, the visit to the PSC Chair, IGP Solomon Arase (rtd) by the incumbent IGP Usman Alkali Baba is considered historic.
