• Demands official publications, websites to reflect his position as first indigenous commandant
Family members and children of former Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Aneto Umeadi Oyeoka Chinwuba, have demanded the immediate restoration of his name, photograph, and full biographical details to the list and gallery of past Commandants of the Nigeria Police College, Ikeja, Lagos State.
In a formal protest letter addressed to the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, the family lamented the shocking removal of Chinwuba’s name, photograph, official biography, and entire historical record from all Nigeria Police Force databases, archives, publications, and the officials of the Nigeria Police College, Ikeja, where he served with distinction as the first indigenous Commandant after independence.
The letter was signed on behalf of the family by Amaechi Chinwuba, Prof. Zelinjo Igweze, Ikem Chinwuba, Dr Ugochukwu Chinwuba, Dr Obiageli Onwurah, Chidi Jefferson and Kenechukwu Chinwuba.
In the letter, the family threatened to seek legal redress and mobilise wider national and international attention to this act of historical vandalism if the police failed to address the injustice within 30 days of receiving the letter.
According to the family, the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) cannot claim to uphold justice while actively perpetrating injustice against its own pioneers.
“It is a matter of public and verifiable historical record that Aneto Umeadi Oyeoka Chinwuba, an accomplished police officer of Igbo extraction, was appointed and served as Commandant of the Nigeria Police College, Ikeja, Lagos, in the early 1960s, making him the first Nigerian to occupy that exalted position after the departure of British colonial officers.
“His tenure marked a significant milestone in the indigenisation of the upper echelons of the Nigeria Police Force and symbolised the transfer of institutional leadership to competent Nigerians in the immediate post-independence era.
“For decades, his name and photograph appeared prominently in the College’s Hall of Commandants, official brochures, and Force records as the pioneer indigenous Commandant.
“Yet, in recent years, citizens, researchers, and even serving officers who visit the Nigeria Police College, Ikeja, have observed with dismay that his name has been physically removed from the Commandants’ portrait gallery, his records have been deleted from the official list of past Commandants published by the Force, and all digital and physical references to his leadership have been systematically erased from Police archives and websites. Inquiries made to the College and Force Headquarters are met with either silence or evasive responses.
“This deliberate act of historical erasure constitutes a gross distortion and falsification of the official history of the Nigeria Police Force, an affront to the principles of merit, justice, and national unity enshrined in the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) and the continuation of the systemic marginalisation and denial of recognition suffered by officers of Eastern Nigerian origin in the aftermath of the Nigerian Civil War and beyond.
“It sets a dangerous precedent that allows any administration to rewrite history by simply deleting inconvenient facts. The Nigeria Police Force is a national institution funded by Nigerian taxpayers. Its history belongs to all Nigerians, not to any particular ethnic group, region, or clique within the Force.”
“The removal of Aneto Umeadi Oyeoka Chinwuba’s name without any official explanation is an abuse of authority, an act of historical injustice, and a disservice to the sacrifices of pioneer indigenous officers who laid the foundation for the NPF.”
The family members and children, therefore, demanded the immediate restoration of the name, photograph, and full biographical details of Mr Aneto Umeadi Oyeoka Chinwuba to the list and gallery of past Commandants of the Nigeria Police College, Ikeja, both physical and digital.
They also called for an update of all official publications, websites, and archives of the Nigeria Police Force to correctly reflect his position as the first indigenous Commandant, a formal public explanation and apology from the Nigeria Police Force for this act of erasure, including disclosure of who authorised it and on what grounds, as well as the constitution of an independent panel to investigate how and why such a deliberate falsification of records was carried out, and to ensure it never happens again to any officer, regardless of ethnicity or origin.
The protest letter was copied to President Bola Tinubu, the National Assembly, especially the Senate and House Committees on Police Affairs, the Minister of Police Affairs, Senator Victor Umeh, representing Anambra Central Senatorial District, Obiageli Lilian Orogbu, House of Representatives member, representing- Awka North/Awka South.
Others copied were the Police Service Commission and the National Human Rights Commission.
