Egbetokun’s tenure as IGP illegal – Dele Farotimi
Human rights lawyer Dele Farotimi has stated that Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun should have retired from service.
According to reports, Farotimi criticized the decision of President Bola Tinubu’s administration to extend Egbetokun’s tenure, arguing that it violates constitutional provisions.
Speaking in an interview with News Central, he also affirmed that the accusation made by former African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, was valid.
“Nigeria as a legal entity is full of lies and contradictions, and laws rarely matter in the country that we have built. If laws matter, the reality is that Yele is completely correct. The Inspector General of Police is illegal. He has exceeded his time in office.
“But what the presidency is telling you is that the law does not matter. The President has decreed and it has been as decreed. Because if it is not decreed, then it would be in accordance with the law. And what the law says is that Kayode Egbetokun should retire and should have retired.
“So that the President has decreed is another buggy mentality. That the decree of the President supersedes the constitution or the law in Nigeria is just another one of the many sickening realities of our existence. But that is just what it is,” he said.
Speaking further on his use of the word illegal, Farotimi explained that the President decided to take an action that was against the law. He added that the Police Service Commission (PSC) also confirmed that Egbetokun ought to have retired.
“If the President’s word is superior to the clear wordings of the law, the existential reality is that he has decreed something outside of the law and it is because he is the imperator. It does not change the fact that what he has said supersedes the law.
“So when the pronouncement of the President supersedes the law, the only thing you can say is that the president has issued a decree. That is the effective nature of his pronouncement. Because the Police Service Commission has not denied the fact that the man should have retired,” he added.
