The fate of embattled Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr. Mohammed Dikko Abubakar, appears to have become sealed after President Goodluck Jonathan refused to see him despite his waiting for several hours at the Aso Presidential Villa in the wee hours of today.

“The IGP came to beg the President and waited till around 3am but Jonathan refused to see him. He left the Presidential Villa some minutes to 4am,” an informed source told News Express. The source said that Abubakar’s removal could be announced anytime.

At Force Headquarters in Abuja, the fate that awaits the IGP is already common knowledge. The mood today at the sprawling edifice was rather mournful, with the place looking “unprecedentedly quite,” as one source put it.

News Express had this morning reported that feelers from the Presidency have it that the embattled top cop may not be allowed to stay on the job till July 30, when he is scheduled to retire upon completing 35 years in the service of the Nigeria Police Force.

News Express quoted a usually reliable source as telling the paper over the weekend: “He (Abubakar) is to be sacked any moments from now. I can assure you that he will not be allowed to complete his tenure.”

Asked what IGP Abubakar’s sins are, the source said: “He has failed woefully to the extent that the Army and SSS (State Security Service) have taken over the work of the Police.”

The source claimed that Abubakar’s ostensibly imminent ouster was the reason why the Presidency has refused to release the 2014 Police Budget to him.

The source disclosed that the search for Abubakar’s successor has been narrowed down to Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIP) in charge of Operations, Mr. Michael Zuokumor, and Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) in charge of Intelligence Bureau, Mr. Solomon Arase.

Abubakar joined the police in July 30, 1979 and replaced Hafiz Abubakar Ringim as IGP on January 25, 2012 in acting capacity and was confirmed as IGP in July 2012. Expectations that his coming would bring a new lease of life to the Force soon became dashed as he became embroiled in allegations of favoritism and nepotism, thus dampening the morale of a large chunk of officers and men, thus negatively impacting on the efficiency of the Force.

•Photo shows outgoing IGP M.D. Abubakar.

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