President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday reaffirmed his directive ordering the withdrawal of police officers from VIP escort duties, warning that any minister, senior government official, or individual seeking additional police protection must obtain his personal approval.

Tinubu restated the policy shortly after entering the Council Chambers for the meeting of the Executive Council of the Federation.

He explained that the decision is part of an ongoing effort to redeploy police personnel to critical national security assignments, particularly the fight against kidnapping, banditry, and terrorism.

The President said he had already briefed the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) on the directive, stressing that no ministry, agency, or official should expect special security arrangements without first applying through the IGP and securing his direct consent.

“If you have any problem of security because of the nature of your assignment, please contact the IGP and get my clearance,” Tinubu said.

Tinubu also directed the Minister of Interior to work with the IGP and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) to ensure that withdrawn police escorts are immediately replaced with civil defence personnel where necessary, so that no legitimately vulnerable official is left without protection.

Additionally, the President ordered the National Security Adviser (NSA) and the Department of State Services (DSS) to set up a committee to review nationwide security deployments and strengthen intelligence structures, insisting that Nigeria must mobilise “all the forces we can utilise.”

Tinubu further emphasised that forest guards must now be armed, directing the NSA to take the order as a matter of urgency.

The reaffirmation of the withdrawal policy came amid renewed public debate over alleged misuse of security resources.

Earlier, SaharaReporters reported that Nobel laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka reignited national conversation after stating that the convoy attached to Seyi Tinubu, the President’s son, was large enough to “crush” the recently foiled coup attempt in the Republic of Benin.

Speaking at the 20th Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism Awards in Lagos, Soyinka criticised what he described as Nigeria’s gross misallocation of security manpower at a time when national insecurity is escalating.

He recounted witnessing what he called an “extravagantly large convoy” in Ikoyi, Lagos — one he later learned was attached to Seyi Tinubu.

“The battalion I saw was sufficient to take over a small country,” Soyinka said in the viral video.

“I couldn’t believe it… Apparently, this is how this young man goes around — with his battalion, his heavily armed soldiers.”

Soyinka added, jokingly, that if a major insurgency were to erupt, perhaps the President should ask Seyi to “go and handle it,” given the size of his escort. But he stressed that behind the humour lies a serious concern about security priorities and fairness.

In November, President Tinubu ordered the nationwide withdrawal of police officers from VIP duty, directing that they return to core policing roles. Human rights groups and security analysts have long argued that VIP escorts drain crucial security manpower from the streets and worsen the state of public safety.