‘Adewusi created effective police force that’s envy of military, a reason they struck in 1983’
Femi OGUNLANA
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Chief Sunday Adewusi has been described as a thorough professional and brilliant police officer, who as Inspector General of Police (between 1981 and 1983) built an effective and efficient police force.
The police under him was increasingly perceived as a counterforce to the military and thus considered a real threat to their power; the fear the police could overwhelm the army grew intensely and was believed to be one of the reasons the army took down the civilian government of Alhaji Sheu Shagari in December 1983.
“The 1983 coup was staged partly to whittle down the power of the police because of the way police under Sunday Adewusi was growing and getting more effective,” Dr Saka Balogun, former Chief of Staff to Oyo state governor, Chief Adebayo Alao-Akala, said Saturday at the 4th biennial memorial lecture of Chief Sunday Adedayo Adewusi held in Ogbomoso, Oyo state.
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Dr. Balogun, who was Presidential Liaison Officer (PLO) during the presidency of Alhaji Shagari that got toppled in 1983, stressed the late IGP was always a brilliant officer, “Chief Sunday Adewusi led the crack team that quashed the violent Maitsine riot in Kano in 1981, he made a good name for himself no doubt about it while in service.”
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This is as he disclosed that Adewusi contributed significantly to the growth and development of his hometown, Ogbomoso in diverse ways such as helping in the creation of more local governments among others.
As an addendum, Prof Segun Ajiboye, immediate past Registrar and Chief Executive of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), said, “Sunday Adewusi was the first to buy Armoured Personnel Carriers for the police and that was the first thing they (military) collected after the take over.”
Justice Afolabi Adeniran (rtd), a former Chief Judge of Oyo state, also submitted, “Chief Adewusi was very honest and upright. Every policeman has a good opinion about him; when he became the IG, it was an era of good leadership in the Nigeria Police. He made his mark.”
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A monument should be named after him
Continuing, Justice Adeniran, who is current president of Egbe Omo Ogbomoso Parapo Agbaaye, demanded that a monument be named in the memory of Chief Adewusi because of “his monumental achievements.”
“We recently heard of the University of Abuja being named after former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, a monument should also be named after Adewusi. We have people of calibre, who contributed immensely to the development of Nigeria, our people in positions of authorities should strive to get our great people immortalized. We have many of them, who distinguished themselves in service to the nation,’ as he reeled out names like Brigadier Benjamin Adekunle, Col. Shittu Alao, Brigadier Adekunle Wey, Gen. Oladayo Popoola and so on.
Aale of Okelerin, Oba Samuel Babatunde Amao, also said, “It is a thing of joy we are not forgetting Sunday Adewusi, he’s a national icon. He needs to be immortalized with an higher institution.”
In response to the calls for immortalizing Adewusi, Vice Chancellor of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, LAUTECH, Prof ROM Kalilu, revealed that the university would consider the establishment of a Centre for Police Studies to be named after the late Asiwaju of Ogbomosoland, which Rear Admiral Jacob Ajani (rtd,) however advised should be Centre for Security Studies (and not only police studies) to make it all encompassing.
