Odds Favour Shinaba As Next Police IG

• Arase Lobbies For Extension, DIGs On The Fringe
• Wakama, Doma, Nasarawa Others Go Spiritual

The appointment of a new Inspector General of Police, IGP for the nation may be one of the most important assignments on President Muhammadu Buhari’s
table as he resumes work Monday 20th June, 2016 after his 14-day sick leave in the United Kingdom.
Sources at both the Ministry of Interior, the Presidency and the Force Headquarters who will not
like their names in print said there are varied interests at stake. There may be about eight contenders who were on line since April, when the countdown to Solomon Arase’s exit began. Amongst them were the DIGs Job Doma, Leroy  Wakama, Mamman Tsafe, Chintua Amajor Onu, Jibril Adeniji, and Saliu  Argungu, while in the Assistant Inspector-Generals rank include, AIG of Police, Zone 7 Police Headquarters, Abuja, AIG Bala Nasarawa and AIG A T Shinaba, While each one employs different ways to get the job, there are indications that, barring last minute change of mind, President Muhammadu Buhari may nominate the Commandant of the Police Academy, POLAC, Wudil, in Kano State, Mr Adenrele Tasheed Shinaba, Assistant Inspector General of Police, AIG, as the next Inspector General Of Police, to take over from Mr Solomon Arase, who retires on Tuesday. nationalTRAIL investigations reveal that, Shinaba who hails from Lagos state became one of the favorites because of his non compromising disposition, seeming incorruptibility and thoroughness, besides his sense of discipline and professional candour, which his colleagues say are his selling points. But sources at the Presidency also said, the outgoing IG, Mr. Arase is not letting the job slip through his fingers without a fight, as he has meanwhile intensified lobbies for an extension of his tenure, to enable him implement his unfinished plans for the repositioning of the force, even as the President is said to have made up his mind.. Our correspondent however reports that, the IGP seems to be swimming against the tide, as, long before his official date of retirement, the President has been under intense pressure to sack Arase, but the president had been reluctant because of the likely political implications of such an action. APC National Chairman, John Oyegun and Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole: Arase’s home state Governor are believed to be amongst those fronting for the IGP to continue, having spoken well of him before the President, but members of President Buhari’s kitchen cabinet, and the Northern Muslim Ulamas do not seem impressed with Arase’s outing to warrant an extension. This is even as younger officers in the police force are getting agitated with reports of Solomon Arase’s likely extension of service, as many of them are clamouring to move to their next ranks with Solomon Arase’s exit, while those of the rank of AIG’s are hoping to step in. As for the Deputy Inspectors General of Police, DIGs, whose jobs hang in the balance in the event that somebody below their rank gets appointed as the next IGP, the game has become a waiting one, with some of them said to have gone spiritual, though they have not given up hopes that either of them could succeed Solomon Arase. Senior Police Officers who spoke to our correspondent on conditions of anonymity said they could not fault Arase as a professional, but that the clamour for him to leave was informed by the need for those
behind him to have the opportunity of attaining their height in the force. “I can confirm to you that he is one of the best IGPs we have had so far, but his time is up, and I want to advise him not to stay beyond his welcome. The forces against him are enormous and it will be counterproductive for him to stay one day longer than his due date. He knows it and he should not lobby”, one of the officers, himself a lawyer like Arase, told our correspondent. Solomon Arase, the nation’s 23rd indigenous Inspector-General of Police, may on Tuesday, 21st June 2016 retire from the Nigeria Police Force following his attainment of thirty-five years in service, in accordance with the civil service rule. Arase who was widely speculated to have been removed by President Muhammadu Buhari alongside other Service Chiefs appointed by former President Goodluck Jonathan, however, was retained by what many observers say is as a result of his kinsmen being the strong pillars holding the APC Government. Described as having a penchant for excelling in anything he does, Adenrele Tasheed Shinaba a savvy, purpose-driven, value- maximizing, and thoroughbred police officer, whose driving force remains the need to make a difference in all his endeavours appears to be coasting home to the job, we learnt. Every time life had offered him a more convenient way to
appraise the meaning of human strives, this compulsion to put a shine on the harsh realities of life and enthrone peace and security where turbulence once ruled, has always been definitive of his philosophical stead. Even though luck had played a part in his ascent in his chosen career , he has had to wield no magic wand other than his commitment to excellence which derives its finer stuff from hard work, dedication, and recourse to endless prayers. On the corruption-prone theatre of policing where graft is rife and almost a natural way of life, Aderenle Shinaba’s role as a stickler for principle is quite distinctive. His broad-based initiatives to keep the men of the force in check and curb armed bandi try or robbery as Commissioner of Police in the FCT, seemed more serious episodes in the anti-terrorist war and in combating crime in the Federal Capital and its environs. The thrust of his vision and engagements are proactive security, where response time to incidences of crime or breach of security is rapid and minimized to the barest minimum. This, coupled with zero tolerance for armed robbery, helped in no small measure to safeguard lives and property within the FCT, thereby, giving the aura of the city a new lease of fresh air and relative peace. Where ever he served, as Commissioner of police, Shinaba’s had demonstrated clear understanding of the task of cementing and mainstreaming a viable community policing culture. Aderenle Shinaba has invariably endeared himself to the hearts of many observers by his strides as a goal-getting thoroughbred professional whose qualities never ceases to amaze even his critics. Born on 5th November, 1957 to the Shinaba family of Lagos Inland, Lagos State, Aderenle also named Tasheed was the apple of the family, and often demonstrated uncommon quest for experimentation with rare courage, tenacity, which turned out later in life to be his greatest revelation and strength. His started his educational pursuit at the Crowther Memorial College, Lokoja, Kogi State before moving on to the Federal School of Arts and Science, Ondo, Ondo State where he sat for his Advanced Level or A/Levels in 1978. He was at the prestigious University of Ibadan (UI), Oyo State for his Bachelor of Education (Guidance
and Counseling). Aderenle Shinaba enlisted with the Nigeria Police Force as a Cadet and became an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) in 1984. He went for further studies at the Obafemi Awolowo University , Ile-Ife, Osun State for a Master degree in Public Administration (MP A) graduating as it were in 2011. He has held several positions and led several operations during his career spanning his journey as the Administrative Officer Ogun State Police Command (Central Police State, Ilaro) in 1985, a year he became Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP). He was redeployed in 1986 to the ‘B’ Department Operations Abeokuta, Ogun State, and from 1987-1989, as the Divisional Traffic Officer, Owode Egbado. In the same year (1989), he was transferred to Area ‘D’ Command Mushin, Lagos-State. He was in 1990 posted to State CID Lagos State Command, Panti, as the “OC Crime”, and in 1991 as the “OC homicide and OC Anti Robbery” State CID Lagos State Command, Panti.
In 1992 he became the Force Secretary, Force Headquarters Moloney Lagos where he held sway until 1994 when he was transferred to State CID, Oyo State Command, Igyanku, Ibadan as “OC Robbery.” Shinaba has been Divisional Police Officer (DPO) at various times starting with DPO Divisional Police Headquarters, Ogbomoso in 1995, DPO Divisional promotion as A r e a Commander , Ile-Ife Area Command, Osun State Command, Zonal DC Operations Zone ’7 Abuja, and Commissioner of Police Anti Terrorism Squad Force Headquarters, Abuja in 2008. In 2009 he was the Commissioner of Police, Adamawa State Police Command, Bayelsa State Police Command, Bayelsa (Election Duty) in 2011, and Commissioner of Police FCT , Police Command, Abuja from 2012 to 2013. He went for yet further studies at the renowned Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPPS) Kuru, Jos, Plateau State, presumably preparatory to higher responsibilities.