Police conference funds not diverted — Organiser

2026-03-16 - 20:37

Lenders Consult International Limited has dismissed allegations that funds meant for the organisation of the Conference and Retreat for Senior Police Officers were diverted, insisting that neither the company nor its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Shina Philips, received or mismanaged any funds connected with the programme. In a statement on Monday, the company described the allegation as false and misleading, stressing that it had never received funds from the Nigeria Police Force for the organisation of the conference. According to the firm, the conference and retreat were conceived as a private initiative aimed at supporting capacity building and professional development within the police. It explained that the retreat brings together senior officers from the rank of Commissioner of Police and above to engage in peer review and exchange ideas on policing strategies and contemporary security challenges. The firm said it proposed the initiative to the police authorities and undertook the responsibility of approaching potential sponsors to fund the programme. “Arising from our desire to support the Nigeria Police in their capacity-building efforts, we approached the police authorities with a proposal to organise an annual Conference and Retreat for Senior Police Officers. “Our proposal included an obligation that, as initiators, Lenders Consult International would be responsible for approaching potential sponsors to fund the retreat. This arrangement was well received and approved from the outset and has been in place since 2019,” the statement noted. The firm further stated that the maiden edition of the conference was held in Lagos in 2019, with the Lagos State Government serving as host sponsor. According to the firm, the event was declared open by late former President Muhammadu Buhari, who was represented at the time by then Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo. It added that subsequent editions of the conference and retreat were held in Uyo in February 2022 and later in Owerri between 2022 and 2024, before the 2025 edition took place in Abeokuta. The firm emphasised that the programme has been sustained through sponsorship arrangements and the company’s support, maintaining that the police had never provided funding for the event. “We would like to state very strongly that we have never, at any time, received any money by way of funding from the Nigeria Police for the sponsorship of the event. “As a corporate entity, we have worked tirelessly to keep the Conference and Retreat afloat, even when sponsorship funds were inadequate to cover the cost of organising the event,” the statement said. The firm also denied allegations that its officials shared funds with any past or serving police chief. “For the sake of emphasis, we restate that Lenders Consult International, our MD/CEO and any member of our staff have at no time received any money from the Nigeria Police, nor have they ever shared any purported funds with any past Inspector-General of Police or any officer of the force,” it said. The firm maintained that the annual conference has contributed significantly to reforms and institutional development within the Nigeria Police Force. According to the statement, one of the outcomes of the retreat was the establishment of the Police Institute in Abuja. It also disclosed that it later proposed the Nigeria Police Awards and Commendations as a platform to recognise and motivate outstanding officers within the force. “In furtherance of the desire to continue to motivate the officers and men of the Nigeria Police, we proposed the idea of an annual Nigeria Police Awards and Commendations, which the police authorities embraced,” the firm said. “Two editions of the awards have been held in Abuja in 2024 and 2025, and they were fully sponsored by Lenders Consult International and our partners.” The statement also highlighted the professional background of its Managing Director, Dr. Shina Philips, describing him as a FIFA-licensed football agent who has handled the transfer of several Nigerian footballers. It added that Philips was appointed a consultant to the police in 2020 and tasked with coordinating activities for Police Week 2020, which was later cancelled following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The firm said Philips had continued to support police initiatives without receiving payment, noting that some official trips he undertook alongside the immediate past Inspector-General of Police were personally funded.