Retired IGP M.D. Abubakar: The Exceptional Police Officer

For the records:

Mohammed Dikko Abubakar, CFR, NPM, mni (Rtd), was not just a Nigerian policeman – he was a symbol of integrity and leadership in service. 

A former Inspector General of Police, MD as he’s fondly called was appointed in 2012 to succeed IGP Hafiz Ringim and served with distinction until 2014, when he was succeeded by IGP Suleiman Abba.

Even after retirement, his commitment to national development did not wane. He served as the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council at Al-Hikmah University, Ilorin, and was also the President of the Alumni Association of the National Institute (AANI) – a position he held with dignity and vision.

But beyond titles and offices, it was his character that defined him.

One Saturday morning, while serving as Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, Abubakar set out early – before an official 10 a.m. appointment – to inspect police checkpoints. Alone and in mufti, he drove through Herbert Macaulay Way, choosing to witness firsthand the conduct of officers under his command.

Stopped by policemen from the Panti Division, he was treated like any ordinary citizen. They questioned him, demanded identification, and when he resisted – asking them to first show their own IDs – they arrested him and took him to the station.

The scene that followed was almost cinematic: panic set in when officers at the station slowly realized the man they had just “arrested” was the CP himself. Some fled. One jumped through a window. The rest stood frozen, waiting for disciplinary measures.

But in a moment that speaks volumes about his leadership, CP Abubakar chose empathy over vengeance.

“Just a week earlier, I had visited that station to warn them about misconduct,” he said. “But on Monday, over 100 families came to plead. One elderly man said the officer involved was the only policeman from his village. If I dismissed him, the village would be without a representative in the Force.”

He didn’t dismiss them. Instead, he used the moment as a lesson – for them and for others.

Such was the kind of leader Mohammed Dikko Abubakar was firm, yet forgivin; Disciplined, yet deeply humane; A man who believed in reform through example and correction, not destruction.

IG MD, Your legacy lives on – in the Force, in public service, and in the hearts of those you led.