Juliana Francis
A seasonal drama seems to be playing out as documents obtained by Swift Reporters appear to have contradicted claims by online platform SecretReporter that Blue Sea Investments Ltd. was unregistered and was awarded a Nigeria Police Force contract without due process approval.
A Corporate Affairs Commission public search record showed that Blue Sea Investments Ltd., with registration number RC 273945, was incorporated on June 14, 1995, contrary to the allegation that the company was never registered.
Also, a letter from the Bureau of Public Procurement dated September 10, 2024, addressed to the Inspector-General of Police, showed that the procurement was duly reviewed.
The letter concerns security equipment worth N1.408 billion from M/S Blue Sea Investment Limited, listing 1,450 NATO Past Type ST-4 helmets valued at N638 million and 1,400 units of Armoured Vest 183 valued at N770 million.
The BPP, in the letter, stated that a Due Process Certificate of “No Objection” could be granted for the procurement.
Former Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun (retd), who broke his silence on the allegations, said he has instructed his lawyers to commence civil proceedings against the publishers over what he described as malicious and defamatory reports.
He said he had overtime ignored targeted blackmails in order not to give the purveyors the attention they were seeking, but noted that his earlier silence seems to have been mistaken for weakness.
“I don’t have time for miscreants who thrive only on blackmail. Responding to them will give the falsehoods unnecessary publicity. I know their sponsors and know their motives,” he said, adding, “I am not perturbed, and I am confident those responsible would be exposed and held accountable. No one contends with a favoured child of God and laughs last.”
Findings showed that negative reports about the former IGP often surface online amid speculation that President Bola Tinubu might be considering him for another appointment. Egbetokun, however, neither confirmed nor denied the speculation.
On the police helicopter contract, a source at Force Headquarters told Swift Reporters that the award went through due process.
According to the source, funds reached the contractor late and were no longer enough to buy the aircraft on the original terms. The contractor then requested a contract variation, which Egbetokun forwarded to the BPP.
The source said the BPP approved it before he left office, but funds were not available to complete the process. The source disclosed that when the police urgently needed the helicopter for operations against bandits in the North West and North Central, the contractor proposed supplying a fairly used aircraft with the funds already advanced, but Egbetokun reportedly rejected the offer, insisting the BPP approval covered only a brand-new helicopter.
The revised arrangement, the source said, had not been paid for when Egbetokun handed over, noting that the current IGP, Olatunji Rilwan Disu, was aware of the situation and working to conclude the procurement and secure delivery.
On allegations relating to feeding and dry-ration payments, sources explained that the IGP approves funding allocations for the Force’s eight departments, 17 zonal commands, 36 state commands and the FCT command, while heads of these units manage their own allocations and operational needs, with approvals also made at departmental or command level.
They noted that items such as tissue paper, cartons of milk and dry rations ordinarily fall under administrative, financial and procurement procedures, depending on delegations of authority, and that it would be unrealistic for the IGP to approve every purchase in an organisation of the Force’s size.
The Force also has the Assistant Inspector-General of Police for Public Accounts and Budget and the Force Procurement Officer, who handle financial administration and procurement compliance.
Some serving and retired officers defended the former IGP’s integrity. A serving senior officer said, “Egbetokun does not seek gratification from anybody, and you may even get into trouble for trying to offer him gratification.”
A retired officer who worked closely with him said, “Egbetokun does not cut corners. He is a man who follows due process to its logical conclusion,” while criticising the spread of unverified allegations on social media.
A retired Commissioner of Police alleged that some of those behind the publications were serving officers unhappy with Egbetokun’s strict enforcement of rules, saying, “The thieves are the ones ganging up against Egbetokun to tarnish his reputation with falsehoods by using social media.”
As at press time, the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Aniete Iniedu, was yet to officially react to the publication.
