Who Is Tunji Disu? Meet Nigeria's New Inspector General of Police (IGP)

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed Olatunji Disu as the Inspector General of Police, following the resignation of Kayode Egbetokun.

Disu becomes the 23rd Inspector General of Police, stepping into the country’s top policing role after more than three decades in service.

Born on April 13, 1966, in Lagos Island, Lagos State, Disu joined the Nigeria Police Force on May 18, 1992. His career has spanned patrol commands, investigative units, intelligence operations and peacekeeping missions. It has also unfolded across multiple states, Ogun, Ondo, Rivers, Lagos, and at the Force Headquarters in Abuja.

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Disu’s academic journey began in Lagos and Ogun States. He attended Holy Cross Cathedral Primary School and completed his primary education at Mayflower Junior School, Ikenne, in 1979. He later studied at Pobuna Secondary Grammar School, Epe, and St. Gregory’s College, Lagos, where he finished secondary school in 1985.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in English (Education) from Lagos State University in 1990. He also obtained a Postgraduate Diploma in International Relations and Strategic Studies from the same institution. Over the years, he expanded his academic credentials with two master’s degrees, one in Public Administration from Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba (2010), and another in Criminology, Security and Legal Psychology from Lagos State University (2022).

His training profile extends beyond Nigeria. Disu attended a Small Arms Smuggling Training in Botswana, Internet Fraud Training at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, and the Strategic Leadership Command Course at the Police Staff College, Jos. He also completed courses in forensic investigations and criminal intelligence at the University of Lagos, among others.

Disu has served as Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in Ago Iwoye (Ogun State), Ikare and Owo (Ondo State), and Elimbu and Elelenwo in Rivers State. He later headed the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and anti-kidnapping units in Rivers State, and at different times commanded SARS in Ondo, Oyo and Rivers States. He also served as Second-in-Command of the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Rivers.

In 2005, he led the first Nigerian Police contingent to the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) as contingent commander. While deployed in Darfur, he was appointed Acting Chief of Staff before returning to Nigeria in 2006.

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Disu served as Deputy Commissioner of Police in the Department of Operations at Force Headquarters, Abuja. On August 2, 2021, then Inspector General Usman Alkali Baba appointed him head of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), a unit previously led by Abba Kyari.

In July 2022, the Force leadership commended the Disu-led Force Intelligence Bureau Intelligence Response Team (FIB-IRT) for operations including the arrest of a fraud syndicate accused of breaching bank accounts belonging to individuals and corporate organisations.

He was promoted to Commissioner of Police in March 2023 by the Nigerian Police Service Commission.

In February 2026, President Tinubu appointed Disu as Inspector General of Police. His appointment places him at the helm of the Nigeria Police Force at a time when issues of security reform, public trust, and operational efficiency remain central to national discourse.