Smith Defends Legal Action Against Police

The Chairman, Police Service Commission, Musiliu Smith, has written to the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, explaining the reasons for the legal action taken by the PSC against the police at the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The commission is seeking an interlocutory injunction restraining the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, from going ahead with the recruitment of 10,000 constables into the Nigeria Police Force.
The processes filed before the Federal High Court 5 on September 27, 2019, by Kanu Agabi (SAN), will be heard on October 23.
Smith in his letter dated October 16, stated that the commission and the police were involved in the recruitment process, but the force, he said, subsequently took over the exercise by unilaterally releasing the list of candidates for medical screening.
The police authorities had insisted on conducting the recruitment, saying the commission had no mandate to recruit men for the force.
Despite the PSC’s opposition and legal challenge, the force had last Sunday released the final list of successful candidates who had been directed to resume at 18 police colleges and training schools nationwide for the commencement of training on October 21.
Smith drew the COS’ attention to previous legal opinions by four Attorneys-General on the long-drawn recruitment dispute with the police authorities, noting that Kalu Agabi (2002), Bayo Ojo (2007), Mohammed Adoke (2010) and lately, the current Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (2019) had taken different positions on the issue.