Police cadet dies in academy, staff blamed for negligence

A 100-level course 9 police cadet, Suleiman Jika has died after a brief illness while at the Nigeria Police Academy, POLAC, in Kano State.

This was made known in a press release by the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO of POLAC in Wudil, Kano State, ASP Hussain Suleman on Sunday.

According to the press release which was shared on the Nigerian Police Force’ official X (formerly Twitter) account, the deceased cadet was well cherished by his colleagues and superiors.

Jika hailed from Adamawa State, and was a student in the Department of Computer Science. He is said to be the son of Alhaji Haliru Jika, a former House of Representatives committee chairman of police and a current senator.

He reportedly collapsed inside the toilet in the early hours of Saturday.

However, the Police PPRO in his statement said that Jika succumbed to a brief and unexpected illness which he had initially received treatment for and was fast recovering.

He expressed shock that while they all watched Jika receive certification that he was fit and could return to his duties, fate took a twist when he was rushed back to the academy’s clinic over complains of restlessness and eventually lost his life in the struggle.

The statement read:

“The Nigeria Police Academy (POLAC) is deeply saddened to announce the passing of one of its cherished cadets, Mr. Sulaiman Jika, who succumbed to a brief and unexpected illness. Jika, a dedicated cadet from the Department of Computer Science, was a proud native of Adamawa state.

“On 29th August, 2023, he sought medical attention at the  Academy Clinic due to an ailment. Following a diligent course of treatment and his gradual recovery, he was certified fit and discharged by the Medical Doctor on call the next day, and tasked to return at regular intervals for checks which he adhered to. However, fate took an unforeseen turn. On 2nd September 2023, he was once again admitted to the clinic for further examination and care following a complaint of restlessness. Though his vitals were normal upon examination and all necessary medical steps were taken, we regrettably report his untimely passing.

“The Commandant of the Nigeria Police Academy, AIG Sadiq Idris Abubakar, extends his deepest condolences to the grieving family, friends, and loved ones of Cadet Sulaiman Jika. Our thoughts and prayers are with them during this period of profound sorrow. May God Almighty grant them the strength and resilience to bear this heavy loss.

Meanwhile, jika’s colleagues in the Nigerian Police academy have blamed his demise on continuous starvation and malnourishment for over two weeks.

Some of the cadets had reportedly accused the Commandant, Assistant Inspector-General, Sadiq Abubakar, of high-handedness and financial mismanagement of feeding allowance meant for the students.

A cadet, who pleaded anonymity said the victim was rushed to the academy’s clinic but was left untreated because there are no drugs and no medical officers to attend to him in the unconducive environment, before he gave up and died.”

Another cadet also said there was usually high traffic of sickly cadets at the unequipped clinic on a daily basis.

He said, “Since the new commandant assumed office, they’ve been providing very bad and inadequate food for us. The boy that died was not up to 20 years old. The boy wouldn’t have died if they’d attended to him. The commandant also ordered the closure of the market and laundry and approved undeserved training exercises during lecture hours.

“Cadets collapse daily here during training due to fatigue, because it’s either they’re starved, malnourished, or both. We’re usually threatened by the commandant and forced to engage in unwarranted training exercises. Also, many cadets have been dismissed on the basis that they fell sick; that’s why many are trying to manage themselves to avoid expulsion from the academy.”

Meanwhile, staff members, who spoke to newsman also complained about the monthly feeding allowance of the academy as a source privy to the running of the academy reportedly revealed that part of the money was usually diverted into private pockets by some top officials.

All efforts to reach the Commandant, AIG Abubakar, for a reaction proved abortive.

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