The Former Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and immediate past Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC), Solomon Ehigiator Arase, has passed away at the age of 68. He reportedly died on Saturday at Cedarcrest Hospital, Abuja.
As of the time of filing this report, neither his family nor the Nigeria Police Force had released an official statement confirming the circumstances surrounding his death.
Arase, who served as Nigeria’s 18th Inspector-General of Police, was appointed in April 2015 by former President Goodluck Jonathan and retired from service on June 21, 2016, after attaining the mandatory retirement age.
Born on June 21, 1956, in Owan West Local Government Area of Edo State, Arase earned a degree in Political Science from Ahmadu Bello University in 1980 before joining the Nigeria Police Force in 1981. He later obtained a Law degree from the University of Benin and a Master’s degree in Law from the University of Lagos.
During his distinguished career, he headed the Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Bureau, the Force’s elite intelligence unit, and held several key appointments, including Commissioner of Police in Akwa Ibom State and Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of intelligence.
He also had an international stint with the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Namibia and was a Fellow of the Nigerian Defence Academy.
In January 2023, he was appointed Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC) by then-President Muhammadu Buhari, a position he held until June 2024 when President Bola Tinubu relieved him of the appointment.
Tributes are expected to pour in from security chiefs, political leaders, and colleagues as the nation mourns.
