Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) Aishatu Abubakar-Baju, Nigeria’s most senior female police officer, announced that discriminatory police laws mandating the dismissal of unmarried policewomen who become pregnant while in service have been abolished. Speaking on Channels TV on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, she confirmed that such regulations, including Section 127 of the Police Act, have been expunged as part of ongoing police reforms and the implementation of the Police Act of 2020.
Abubakar-Baju highlighted the introduction of the Nigeria Police Gender Policy by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) in 2024, which aims to eradicate gender discrimination and promote inclusivity within the force. She emphasized that the Nigeria Police Force is now committed to being an equal-opportunity institution.
This announcement follows significant legal challenges to discriminatory regulations. In 2021, Omolola Olajide, an unmarried police corporal in Ekiti State, was dismissed for becoming pregnant. Her dismissal sparked public outrage and legal action. While a Federal High Court initially upheld the regulation, citing that officers were aware of it before joining the force, the Court of Appeal overturned this decision in May 2024. The appellate court declared Regulations 126 and 127 unconstitutional for violating gender equality provisions in Nigeria’s Constitution and international human rights laws.
The reforms mark a pivotal shift in addressing gender discrimination within the Nigeria Police Force.
