Ex-IGP Tafa Balogun buried in Osun

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Former inspector general of police, Tafa Balogun, has been laid to rest in his country home of Ila-Orangun, Osun State.

He was buried on Saturday.

Balogun was appointed Nigeria’s 21st inspector general of police on March 6, 2002. He left the office in 2005.

He died in Lagos on Thursday, four days to his 75th birthday.

The funeral prayer was observed according to Islamic rites at the Ila-Orangun Central Eid Praying Ground.

Chief Imam of Ila-Orangun, Abdulhammed Salahudeen, presided over the burial prayers.

Former IGP Solomon Arase, who spoke with journalists at the burial, described Mr Balogun as a mentor and a father who impacted.

“He was an operational icon; intellectual to the core; a cerebral officer. Even in death, he remains my mentor and benefactor. He was like a big father when it came to policing difficult issues. You can always go to him for advice, and we will miss him for that,’’ Mr Arase said.

The police commissioner in Osun, Olawale Olokode, represented IGP Usman Alkali Baba at the funeral.

Ismail Omipidan, chief press secretary of Governor Gboyega Oyetola and finance commissioner Bola Oyebamiji, represented the state government at the funeral.