Reports on Monday indicated that the President may be increasingly under pressure to replace the head oh the police force, as the plot to remove the Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase, seems to be gaining momentum.

Sources close to Arase confirmed to Tribune that they were aware of the plot.

An Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) from the South is being packaged as his replacement.

The move to kick Arase out before his retirement next year was being coordinated by a leading figure of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the southern part of the country, the reports allege.

Before the APC top-notcher jetted out of the country last week, he reportedly directed the projected replacement to see a tradition custodian who is expected to take him to a retired IGP from the North.

The retired IGP is well respected and reportedly close to President Muhammadu Buhari.

A few weeks back, the camp of the proposed successor met in Lagos to review plans and strategies.

The APC chieftain was said to be initially packaging a northerner who recently served as commissioner of police in a South-West state before his elevation as AIG.

The move to the southerner was said to be occasioned by the reality that the North could not have the position without widespread uproar.

Checks at the Presidency showed that the issue had been mentioned but nothing had been concluded.

At influential quarters within the seat of power, those pushing for the said AIG reportedly drew negative.

A few years back, the said AIG ran into a public storm over an alleged criminal conduct in a sector outside of the force, ultimately leading to his exclusion from a plum job.

A court eventually cleared him of any wrongdoing and he has since bagged both professional and positional promotion.

* Source: Tribune