Politics
2023: IPAC Kicks Against Suspected Kolo Deployment As Kano CP
The Kano State chapter of Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) – the umbrella body of registered political parties in Nigeria, – has rejected alleged plans by the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) to deploy an infamous commander of the disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, Kolo Yusuf, to Kano as Commissioner of Police.
In a press statement issued after an emergency meeting on Monday in Kano, the Deputy Chairman of IPAC, Hon. Isa Nuhu Isa Danfulani, who is the state chairman of Zenith Labour Party along with fifteen chairmen of other political parties alleged that the Kano state Governor, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and other powerful forces at the centre have lobbied the Inspector General of the Police, IGP to deploy Mr Kolo Yusuf as the new commissioner of police to Kano.
The group who expressed dissatisfaction with the alleged plans, premised their reasons on the antecedents of Kolo, sighting cases of human right violations and unprofessional conduct.
IPAC alleged that Mr. Kolo was involved in a gruesome murder case of a good citizen of Kano in person of Abdullahi Alfa who was beaten to death by the defunct SARS in Kano under the leadership of Mr Kolo, who was found guilty in a suit number FHC/K/H/CS/84/2013 at a Federal High Court in Kano.
The political body also recounted on the efforts of notable leaders such as Late Emir Ado Bayero and Late Bashir Tofa, who wrote a petition against Mr Kolo, praying for his transfer out of Kano.
IPAC however noted that the deployment would also cripple the fragile peace in the state and possibly cause pandemonium during elections because the said police officer is allegedly known for flagrant abuse of power.
According to the statement, “There have been fears over attempt to destroy the peaceful co-existence Kano enjoys ahead of 2023 elections, as it may be recalled that the Governorship Candidate of the ruling APC and his deputy were caught in election malpractice during the 2019 Governorship election.
“The political parties enjoin the IGP and the Police Service Commissioner to carefully select a professional police commissioner to be deployed into the state.
“We wish to also thank the present CP Samaila Dikko who will be retiring soon and the AIG zone one for their professional conduct of duties in Kano.
“As good citizens and political leaders, we want to reassure our commitment to cooperate with any commissioner of police with good character and attitude posted to Kano state, but we unanimously reject the purported posting of CP Kolo Yusuf,” the statement however reads.
Prof. Amupitan gave the warning on Saturday, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, during the South-South Zonal Readiness Assessment and Interactive Staff Engagement organised ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He said insecurity remained a potential challenge to the electoral process but stressed that the Commission would not allow threats against its personnel to undermine its constitutional responsibilities.
“Insecurity may pose a challenge, but our collective constitutional resolve is far stronger. Let me again send a clear message from Port Harcourt: anyone who attempts to threaten, intimidate, or harm our ad-hoc staff, NYSC members, or permanent personnel will be brought to justice under the full weight of the law,” he said.
The INEC Chairman, who was accompanied by National Commissioners, directors and technical aides, disclosed that the South-South engagement was the fifth in a series of zonal assessments, following similar exercises in the South-West, North-West, South-East and North-East.
He explained that his physical presence across the geopolitical zones reflected the Commission’s field-first approach, emphasising that electoral integrity must be established through effective operations at the grassroots.
According to him, the assessment would cover operational preparedness across the 123 Local Government Areas in the six South-South states.
On election security, Prof. Amupitan said INEC had moved away from reactive security arrangements traditionally activated around election day to a proactive, intelligence-driven framework known as the “ICCES Tentacle”.
He explained that the framework was designed to extend inter-agency security coordination from national and state headquarters to local government areas and Registration Area Centres, including remote communities.
He identified three critical pillars of the framework as mapping and mitigating security threats, protecting electoral personnel and infrastructure, and guaranteeing safe access to polling units.
The INEC boss said the security arrangement would provide comprehensive protection for electoral personnel, technological infrastructure, including Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices and server infrastructure, as well as voters.
He added that the framework was intended to ensure that every polling unit, irrespective of its geographical location or history of security challenges, remained safe and accessible for the exercise of democratic rights.
Prof. Amupitan disclosed that the South-South security architecture comprised approximately 60 major operational formations, headquarters and state commands operating under the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES).
The network, he said, brings together military, naval, air, police and other security and intelligence agencies across the six states.
“Together, this integrated multi-agency network represents the operational backbone that guarantees intelligence-led protection across every riverine creek, coastal axis, and land-based polling unit in the Niger Delta,” he stated.
Providing an overview of the region’s electoral significance, the INEC Chairman said the South-South had the fourth-largest voting bloc in the country, with 15,823,550 registered voters, representing 15.30 per cent of the national register.
Rivers State alone, he said, accounts for 3,736,434 registered voters spread across the 23 local government areas.
Alhaji Abubakar made the demand following revelations that some INEC registration officers allegedly abused their access to the voter registration system to introduce irregular records into the database.
In a statement issued by his Director of Strategic Communications, Mr Phrank Shaibu, the former vice-president described the development as a serious breach of the Commission’s internal safeguards and raised concerns about the integrity of the electoral process.
He urged INEC to identify the officials implicated in the alleged misconduct and explain what disciplinary or legal measures had been taken against them.
Alhaji Abubakar also called for an independent forensic audit of the preliminary voters’ register to establish the scale of the alleged manipulation, identify affected records and determine how the questionable entries were introduced into the system.
He further insisted that INEC preserve all relevant voter records, image files, system access logs and electronic audit trails to prevent the destruction or alteration of evidence before an independent examination could be conducted.
The former vice-president also demanded that the Commission disclose the identities of companies contracted to produce sensitive election materials ahead of the 2027 polls, arguing that transparency was essential to building public confidence in the electoral process.
INEC’s Director of Information and Communication Technology, Dr Lawrence Bayode, had earlier disclosed during a television interview that some registration officers across the country allegedly used their official login credentials to introduce irregularities into the voters’ database.
Dr Bayode explained that the Commission’s Automated Biometric Identification System helped identify questionable records and establish how some irregularities entered the system.
He, however, clarified that not all suspicious photographs were AI-generated, as some resulted from poor registration procedures.
The development followed public concerns over suspected AI-generated photographs, alleged duplicate entries and other inconsistencies discovered in the preliminary voters’ register published online on October 26, 2026.
INEC has maintained that the published document is a preliminary register and that it is reviewing questionable records ahead of the certification of the final Register of Voters.
The controversy has intensified calls for greater transparency and accountability in the management of the voters’ register as preparations gather momentum for the 2027 general elections.
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