Few days to the interment of the late retired Inspector General of Police, Mr Solomon Arase in Benin City, Edo State, another top police chief of Edo State extraction, retired Deputy Inspector General of Police, Parry Osayande, has died.
Osayande, according to a former Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command and Special Adviser on Security to the Oyo State Governor, CP Fatai Owoseni (rtd), died on Sunday in Benin City.
Owoseni described the demise of DIG Osayande as a huge loss to the law enforcement community and Nigeria as a whole, eulogising him for his excellent contributions to law enforcement and the massive reforms he instituted in the police.
A well-decorated figure in the Nigerian law enforcement circle, the late Osayande led the operation that captured notorious armed robber, Lawrence Anini.
He later led several reforms in the police service while serving as the chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC) between 2008 and 2013 and Head of the Police Reform Committee between 2007 and 2008.
Osayande built the Police Service Commission House, Abuja, which coincidentally was first occupied by the late Arase when he served as PSC chairman.
DIG Osayande (rtd) was born in Benin City, Edo State in 1936, joining the Nigeria Police in 1960 and retiring as DIG in 1992 after an eventful 32 years in active service.
He served as Commissioner of Police in Bendel State, partook in the operations that suppressed the Bauchi and Kano Riots of the early 90s and led a United Nations Police Unit for Election Monitoring in Namibia.
His post-retirement assignments included chairing the Presidential Committee on Reformation of the Nigeria Police and later serving as the Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC).
In these two roles, Osayande advocated for better funding and equipping of the police as well as focusing on the police force instead of the proliferation of multiple security agencies.
