Nigeria: Police Reinstate AIGs Igwe, Owohunwa, 473 Other Officers After Court Judgement

What the report says

Nigeria’s police force has started reinstating three assistant inspectors-general and 472 other officers after a National Industrial Court ruling overturned their compulsory retirements. The affected personnel include officers from superintendent level up to AIG rank, and the action follows a dispute over the Police Service Commission’s merger-of-service policy.

According to Leadership’s report distributed by AllAfrica, the officers have been directed to undergo a six-month induction programme at the Police Staff College in Jos, Plateau State. A confidential police directive dated 31 July 2026 said the force had begun the reintegration process and asked zonal and state commands to notify the officers and ensure they report for training.

The report says the Police Service Commission later regularised the officers’ first appointment dates in line with the court judgment in Suit No. NICN/ABJ/28/2025. The court had set aside the commission’s earlier decision from January 2025 that ordered the retirees out of service.

The development matters because it affects a large group of senior and mid-level officers and reflects the impact of court intervention on police personnel decisions. The article also notes that the recalled officers were recruited or promoted through police courses between 1992 and 2012, and their revised retirement dates now clear the way for full return to duty.