Meet Monday Agbonika
OpenLife News reports that the Nigeria Police Force’s Zone 5 Headquarters has a new man at the helm.
Assistant Inspector-General of Police Monday Agbonika, until recently the top officer in Edo State, has taken command of the zone covering the Edo and Delta State Police Commands — bringing with him more than three decades of frontline, investigative, and international policing experience.
Agbonika assumed duty on Wednesday, 29 July 2026, according to a statement signed by SP Tijani A. Momoh, the Zone 5 Police Public Relations Officer.
He succeeds AIG Salman-Dogo Garba, who recently retired from the Force. The appointment follows Agbonika’s promotion to the rank of Assistant Inspector-General on 18 May 2026, capping his tenure as Commissioner of Police for Edo State.
Three Decades in the Force
A native of Idah Local Government Area in Kogi State, Agbonika’s career began exactly thirty-four years to the day before his elevation. He enlisted into the Nigeria Police Force on 18 May 1992 as a Cadet Assistant Superintendent of Police, training at the Nigeria Police Academy Annex in Kaduna State.
What followed was a career that touched nearly every corner of policing. His path wound through criminal investigations, administration, public information, and command at the divisional, area, state, and now zonal levels. Along the way, he served as Commissioner of Police for the Mounted Troop in the Department of Operations at Force Headquarters, Abuja.
An Investigator’s Grounding
Agbonika cut his investigative teeth as officer in charge of the Anti-Robbery Squad in Plateau State, and later led the Anti-Fraud Section of the Zonal Criminal Investigation Department in Zone 2, Lagos, where he steered sensitive, high-profile cases to significant breakthroughs.
His command portfolio in Lagos reads like a tour of the city’s toughest postings. He served as Divisional Police Officer across multiple divisions — Festac, Surulere, Oke-Odo, Isokoko, and the Central Police Station at Adeniji Adele on Lagos Island — before rising to Area Commander in Ekiti, Lagos, and Ogun States.
A Scholar in Uniform
Few officers match Agbonika’s academic record. He holds a BSc (Hons) in Psychology and an MSc in Organizational Psychology, both from the University of Jos, alongside a Master’s in Security and Strategic Studies from the University of Ibadan, where he is also pursuing a PhD in Peace and Conflict Studies.
He has completed all mandatory Police courses at the Police Staff College in Jos (psc), and is both a Fellow of the Society for Peace Studies and Practice (fspsp) and a Fellow of the National Defence College, Nigeria (fdc).
A Community-Policing Pedigree
It is in community policing that Agbonika has built an internationally recognised reputation. He once served as Public Information Officer for the UN Police Mission in Liberia, working alongside officers from more than 39 countries and helping to draft the Liberian National Police Media Policy. In 2015, he attended a United States Institute of Peace workshop in Washington DC on community-policing approaches to countering violent extremism, and he is an alumnus of the International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP) on the role of state police in the US criminal justice system.
Taken together, his backers say, this blend of frontline command, investigative depth, international justice-reform practice, and a sustained personal commitment to community policing positions him for a model of best-practice democratic policing.
Honours and the Man Behind the Rank
His service has drawn a string of commendations. Among the most notable: a Commissioner of Police Commendation and Award for Courage in Jos, Plateau State; a “most people-friendly police station” award presented at a ceremony in South Africa; and a 2015 finalist placement for the “Spirit of Lagos” award in the exemplary-conduct category.
Away from the uniform, Agbonika is happily married with children, and counts reading and travelling among his passions — a quiet reflection, perhaps, of the scholar-officer who now takes charge of one of Nigeria’s key police zones.
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