By Dakuku Peterside

Nigeria lost more than a man on August 31, 2025; it lost a compass. The passing of Dr. Solomon Ehigiator Arase, former Inspector-General of Police and Chairman of the Police Service Commission, dimmed a steady light that had shown what Nigerian policing could be when guided by principle, civility, and courage.

Dr. Arase did not merely hold positions; he dignified them. From the Force Criminal Intelligence Department to his role as IGP, and later PSC chairman, one thread ran through his career: the belief that policing is a public trust, and that trust must be earned by fairness consistently practised.

What distinguished Arase was not lofty speeches but the architecture of reform. He understood that the presumption of innocence is the backbone of legitimacy. For him, intelligence-led policing meant prevention before spectacle, early warning over belated force, and careful documentation so justice could command respect.

Even in our personal interactions after his 2015 appointment as IGP, I found him uncompromising on principle. During the tense Rivers State by-elections that followed, we often disagreed. Despite government support for my appeals, he never yielded when they contradicted his convictions. For him, integrity was non-negotiable.

Arase’s legacy is best seen in reforms that endure. The Police Duty Solicitors Scheme, which ensures access to legal representation for detainees, matured into Force Order 20 in 2017 because of his persistence. Though his successor signed it, Arase laid the groundwork. Today, fewer Nigerians are arbitrarily detained partly because he refused to leave fairness to chance.

He also championed digitisation at the Force Criminal Investigations Department. Custody logs, case-tracking systems, and chain-of-evidence reforms made it harder to “disappear” suspects or files. For him, transparency was not a press release; it was a paper trail.

As PSC chairman, Arase emphasised recruitment and promotion on merit, discipline by standards, and accountability enforced by process. He invited civil society and human rights advocates into reform conversations, proving that sustainable change requires coalitions, not decrees.

He also deepened community trust. He established the Police Complaints Response Unit, offering citizens a formal channel to report misconduct, and advanced community policing to replace illegal roadblocks with intelligence-led practices.

Blueprint for the Future

Arase left us a clear path forward:

Codify reforms like PDSS with measurable compliance.

Define boundaries between the PSC and the Nigeria Police Force.

Rebuild investigative capacity and protect station budgets.

Reduce VIP security duties and reinvest manpower into policing communities.

Complete digitisation to strengthen accountability.

Reshape police culture through training that prioritises civility and fairness.

These are not abstract ideals. They are practical steps already seeded by his vision.

More Than an Officer

Beyond his offices, Arase was humane and patriotic. Nigeria, not just Edo or the South-South, was his constituency. He was approachable, warm, and principled. He spoke hard truths about the police, decrying bloated headquarters budgets while frontline stations starved, and criticising the practice of trading public safety for VIP guard duties.

Arase’s legacy lies not in headlines but in standards adopted and systems institutionalised. When recognition was absent, he kept working; when praise came, he shared it. His reforms were never about him, which is why his death feels so large.

The challenge before us is clear: will we institutionalise what he began, or return to the wasteful habit of treating reform as a personality project? To truly honour him, the Presidency and National Assembly must legislate and fund station-level excellence, the PSC and NPF must enforce accountability, governors must invest in prevention, and civil society must keep the system honest.

Dr. Solomon Arase gave Nigeria a blueprint for a fairer, more just police service. His greatest contribution was a vision of policing that restored public trust through civility, transparency, and professionalism. His passing is a profound loss, but his example remains a call to action.

May God comfort his family, grant them strength, and grant his soul eternal rest.