Advocacy Groups Accuse IGP of Attempted Property Takeover, Seek Presidential Intervention

Civil society and student groups have raised allegations of an attempted forceful takeover of properties belonging to the late Chairman of Pinnacle Communications Nigeria Limited, Sir Lucky Omoluwa, implicating the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun. The groups are calling for President Bola Tinubu’s urgent intervention.

In a joint statement released in Abuja, the Global Gender Safety and Moral Development group and the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) claimed that officers from the IGP Monitoring Unit attempted to enter the company’s Asokoro, Abuja premises on January 16 and 17, 2026, to enforce a court order they describe as disputed.

The groups assert that the action is illegal because an appeal is pending at the Federal High Court, with a hearing scheduled for January 28 and an application for a stay of execution already filed. They stated that police attempted to gain access first at night and again the following day, but were prevented by security personnel already on-site and peaceful protesters.

The statement also alleges collaboration between certain police elements and a former Company Secretary of Pinnacle, Mr. Dipo Onifade, who is accused of laying claim to the properties without legal authority. The groups questioned how a former secretary could assume control of an estate while the widow and children of the deceased are alive.

Furthermore, they rejected claims that Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba was appointed to take over the property, labeling it a “broad daylight robbery.”

The coalition has demanded the immediate withdrawal of police from the property, respect for the judicial process, an independent investigation into the police unit’s actions, and the disengagement of the police from the private dispute.

They reminded the public of the IGP’s directive from September 2025, which warned officers against involvement in land and civil disputes, and called on the Nigerian Bar Association, media, and other civil society organizations to join in condemning the alleged abuse of power.