One of the newly appointed Deputy Inspectors General of Police (DIGs) is Idris Abubakar Sadiq, who was once a commandant at the Police Academy (POLAC) in Wudil, Kano, accused of highhandedness.

On Thursday, Kayode Egbetokun, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), decorated six newly appointed DIGs and one Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG).

The Police Service Commission (PSC) approved the appointments following the recent retirement of six veteran DIGs who had left the force on March 3, 2025, after serving 35 years.

On September 2, 2023, A. S. Jika, a cadet from Adamawa State and a member of Course Nine, had died under mysterious circumstances at the academy while Sadiq was in charge.

At the time, the cadet’s death had sparked an outcry from his colleagues, forcing them to blame the incident on the negligence of the academy’s medical staff and Sadiq’s highhandedness.

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The cadets claimed the academy failed to take swift action when Jika complained of deteriorating health.

They said cadets with health challenges were often too scared to seek medical attention at the academy’s clinic because they feared they would not receive appropriate treatment, and they could also get dismissed from the academy.

“Here in POLAC (Police Academy), the commandant, AIG Sadiq Abubakar, makes sure that any cadet that goes to the Academy clinic, for any other minor health reason is dismissed, or placed on indefinite suspension to avoid litigation,” said one of the cadets, who asked not to be named, at the time.

“He terms such a cadet as a weakling and expels him. So, for this reason, cadets who are sick will, out of fear, conceal their illness until it gets out of hand.

“They (POLAC) claimed they treated Jika when he complained of ill health, but the truth is that there are no drugs, and no facility in the clinic.”

Sadiq was also accused of treating the academy’s staff and cadets unfairly.

“Some of the things the commandant has done is that he reduced the feeding ration of the cadets; he closed the academy market where the cadets buy food to augment their feeding. The market now opens only on Sundays,” said another cadet.

“He has stopped the cadets’ allowances. The cadets are supposed to earn some allowances monthly… Where that did not happen, they are supposed to get cumulative money when they pass out from the academy.

“But the latest ones that just passed out since August 12 this year have not been given anything up till now.”

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Another cadet also said, “We cadets are forbidden from using phones, (handsets), even when we are writing their projects; in this modern age that we are supposed to be exposed to high-tech information gadgets, many cadets have been dismissed over the use of phones.

“As at the last count, the commandant has dismissed not less than 150 cadets since he assumed office in less than a year. He engages us in unnecessary strenuous training, and any cadet found with water after such exercise is also sent away from the school.”

Following the incident, authorities at the academy remained silent on the accusations against Sadiq.

On September 5, 2023, the IGP eventually set up a seven-man panel of inquiry to investigate Jika’s death. The findings of the panel were, however, never made public.

Sadiq has since assumed his new role at the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) in Abuja.