CP Samuel Adetuyi turns 73, advocates selfless leadership and good governance.
– Steve Ovirih.
Former Commissioner of Police Rivers State and the Obamoyegun of Idepe Okitipupa, CP Samuel Ayodele Adetuyi (RTD) has advocated people spirited political leadership for Nigeria and has harped on the need for good government for the benefit of the good number of the majority of Nigerians. The senior Citizen who turned 73 in September had an exclusive media chat with thepolity.net at his country home in Okitipupa. While fielding questions from our reporter, the retired top cop noted that it is his age that is 73 but within him , he felt younger and stronger even as he expressed gratitude to God for the grace to have transcended the milestone of 70 years in good health and sound mind.
CP Adetuyi however differed on the issue of an independent security arrangement for any region in Nigeria, stressing that no state or region can go it alone on the issue of establishing state based security network or community policing, adding that wether you called it fusion, to be subsumed or collaboration, any security outfit established by any state or region in Nigeria will need to work hand- in -hand with the Federal Government in order to stamp out crime out of Nigeria.
Adetuyi condemned the high rate of crime in Nigeria but noted that a country gets the kind of policing it deserves, maintaining that there is need for our Police structure in Nigeria to have advanced in terms of operations, logistics , funding and general welfare of personnel. Drawing an instance, he said when he visited New York, he quietly mused that our police and policing methodology in Nigeria is analog , archaic and still has a long, long way to go. Hear him: ” in New York for instance, you can have several lain of nylon tarred road from which vehicles move in measured speeds in nano seconds. Do you think a traffic warden will stand at the middle of the road to control the movement of the vehicles at the connecting routes? No! And of course, as exotic as the automobiles that ply the highways are, you won’t hear of armed robbery or kidnapping or carjacking on the high way. The system works for them because the institution is meant to function in a way that makes the system to work!
” What do we have in Nigeria? Even from the uniform of the cops, you will know that these ones are underfunded. The psyche of the policeman is battered when the logistics needed to function are not there!”
Baba Adetuyi as he is fondly called applauded the joint security network of the South West Governors codenamed “Amotekun” describing it as a very good attempt at securing the Southwest region in the face of untoward banditry, kidnapping and increasing crime rate; he however cautioned that Amotekun should not just be formed as a regional brand of a security network for the sake of regional supremacist agenda, noting that the work of securing our land should be done within the framework of the dictates of the Constitution of the Federal Republic. He said with the benefit of hindsight, it will be advisable if the South West Governors allow a professional collaboration between the South West security network and Nigeria Police, adding that without collaboration with professionals in the job of policing Nigeria, the purpose of establishing the Amotekun scheme would have been defeated.
CP Samuel Adetuyi said a whole lot of things are wrong with this country that makes the country to look marooned in the backwaters even in the 21st century. ” I listened to a news item on the radio which talked about open defecation and Government efforts at combating open defecation and I felt nauseated about the news. It felt like so Nigeria is still battling with open defecation in year 2020? You know if those overseas hear such report about Nigeria and they call your attention to it, you feel so, so ashamed; those in Europe and America will feel like , oh so your country still have people who do that shit in the open place? It’s embarrassing to say the least,” Adetuyi lamented
He said one of the challenges of the country is leadership. ” It is the kind of leadership we want that we will always get. So , let’s make up our mind and strive towards putting in position of leadership people with proven track records, proven integrity and people who have something positive to add to the state because they have the experience and not people who do not have secondary address , whose only vocation is politics.”
When asked the secret of his smart looks at 73, CP Adetuyi, an old boy of Stella Maris College, Okitipupa said , ” God is the secret. I feel younger than my age. I walk out regularly! I jog around very early in the morning . I also recommend it for you. Besides that, it’s grace of God
that I am enjoying because it’s only those whom God keeps that are in safety.”
CP Adetuyi had once served as Commissioner of Police , Welfare and Personnel, Force Headquarters Abuja ; he was Commissioner of Police in Kogi State, Yobe state and was posted to Rivers State as CP during the era of Gov. Peter Odili. Chief Adetuyi penned down as a Police boss in Rivers State. As a result of his avowed interest in learning, the ‘ Great Akokite’ as his alma mater , University of Lagos is fondly called, returned to Adekunle Ajasin University Akungba Akoko ( AAUA) where he bagged another Degree in Law.
Asked to advise the people of Ondo State as Governorship election approaches, Chief Adetuyi said, the people should realise that there is authority in their thumbs and they should use it very wisely. He called on the security outfits of Government to maintain peace without being bias during and after the polls and he charged the politicians not to heat up the polity because of a one day exercise, adding that there can’t be a progressive change in the absence of peace.
Chief Sam Adetuyi, who is The Baba Ijo Methodist Church , Oba Ile Akure said the masses of Nigeria yearn for people -oriented Government policies that can reduce the financial and economic burden in the land and not the ones that will further compound their economic woes , thus the government of the day has its job well cut out, advocating good governance which policies can crease smiles and not anguish on people’s countenace.
