Tobias Sylvester
President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed an assistant inspector-general of police, Garba Umar, as his new security adviser, just 18 days to end of his tenure.
Buhari, who will hand over to the President-elect, Bola Tinub, on May 29, 2023, appointed Garba Umar as a Senior Security Adviser on International Police Cooperation and Counter-terrorism in the office of the Minister of Police Affairs.
Umar is the vice-president of the International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL) for Africa and also the head of the INTERPOL national central bureau (NCB) in Nigeria.
In a statement on Thursday, the Senior Special Media Aide to the President, Garba Shehu said Umar’s appointment will take effect on May 16.
Shehu said the appointment is to enable Nigeria to keep the important position and make way for Garba Umar to complete his nationally beneficial tenure as an Executive Member of the International Police Organisation (INTERPOL).
“In approving his appointment, President Buhari took note of a precedent in which a former executive member, AIG Kamal Subair (Rtd) was retained in service by the federal government of Nigeria after retirement in 2018,” the statement reads.
“President Buhari also took note of the fact that during his tenure as a member of the executive committee, AIG Umar assisted Nigeria in many ways, with the hope that in the remaining one year, he will even do more in securing equipment for crimes, border management and counter-terrorism for the country and in helping to get more Nigerians into important positions in the INTERPOL.”
Garba Umar’s tenure at the INTERPOL ends in November 2024, and his new appointment as Senior Security Adviser takes effect from May 16.
KanyiDaily recalls that President Muhammadu Buhari had also written a letter to the Nigerian Senate seeking approval for a request to borrow $800 million from the World Bank.
