An agile member of the Nigerian Police Force of South Eastern extraction temporarily lost the use of his legs and collapsed when he got word that the Inspector General of Police had transferred him to Borno from his Anambra posting.
Thisday reports
The officer, who is of South-east extraction, and reports said had less than a year left to retire from the service was among the 149 officers affected by the postings to different parts of the country.
Borno State is the epicentre of the Boko Haram insurgency, which has led to the death of over 12,000 Nigerians. Just 66 days ago, the terror sect abducted over 200 schoolgirls from a secondary school in Chibok, Borno State.
The officer, however, was said to have been revived by doctors and other medical personnel at a private hospital in Nnewi where he was rushed to after he slumped.
The transfer of almost 150 senior police officers serving in the state has cast a dark cloud on the entire command.
It was gathered that the letter of transfer signed by Dan Azumi Job, an Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG), at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, indicated that officers within the ranks of ASP and Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) were affected in the mass transfer.
According to the signal from the AIG, obtained by THISDAY, the affected officers were supposed to have reported to their new command on June 9, 2014.
The Anambra State Governor, Chief Willie Obiano had about a fortnight ago requested the IGP to transfer out some of the officers within the police command following the allegation that some of them were colluding with criminal elements in the state, therefore making his battle against criminals difficult.
THISDAY, however, learnt that some of the affected officers are alleging ethnic bias in the transfers, as most of those affected were said to be of southern extraction, especially the Igbos who are protesting their transfer to the Boko Haram prone states.
Some of the officers, who spoke to THISDAY on the condition of anonymity, alleged that while only two officers were transferred to Abia State, 12 officers were transferred to Bauchi; six to Borno; seven to Adamawa; six to Jigawa; seven to Gombe; one to Imo, two to Akwa Ibom two; two to Cross-River; two to Enugu two; two to Edo; three to Delta; and five to Ekiti, among others.