Policemen under the aegis of Concerned Police Inspectors in Nigeria (CPIN) on Thursday, August 15, took a peaceful walk to the Correspondent Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Akwa Ibom State, lamenting over 11 months’ of salary arrears.
The leader of the delegation, drawn from different police formations, who spoke on behalf of their colleagues on condition of anonymity, said their crime-ffighting morale has been dampened by the non-commitment attitude of police authorities towards their welfare.
The protesting officers disclosed that those promoted from the rank of Inspector 11 to 1 are over 1,500 officers and appealed to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, to use his good offices to effect the payment in order for the affected officers to address family issues considering the harsh economic realities in the country.
An appeal letter addressed to IGP Egbetokun, with copies to the presidency, national assembly, and Police Service Commission (PSC), reads:
“We are over 1,500 personnel of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Akwa Ibom Command, promoted from Inspector 11 to Inspector 1 by the IGP effective September 10, 2023, with a signal dated March 21, 2024.
“To date, we are still collecting old salaries as junior inspectors instead of senior inspectors since the IGP gave us the confirmation letters. So we have nowhere to run but to the federal government, which is our employee.
“We are uncomfortable with this inhuman treatment by our IGP. After putting in many years into serving our country, our entitlements are being denied.
“We can no longer feed our families or pay their bills due to the high cost of essential items on the market. It’s difficult to believe that after being celebrated with our families for being elevated to another level, the IGP is deliberately short-ppaying us for 11 months now, and by calculation, the shortfall is over N550,000 each.
“When we contacted our pay officers, there was really always the fact that the IPPS had been returning our voucher because there was no directive from the IGP. So we ask: between our IGP and the police authority, who should take matters of our welfare more seriously?
“Since he assumed office as IGP, Mr Egbetokun has been promoting officers without commensurate payment of their financial accompaniments. The only signal we have been receiving from him, from Abuja, is the dressing code. What are we going to use to buy the uniforms if our due salaries have not been paid?”
They, however, attached an Inspectorate Confirmation of Appointment letter signed by the Commissioner of Police (CP) in charge of welfare, Rose Chollom Dung, on behalf of the IGP, who conveyed congratulatory messages to the affected officers across all commands in Nigeria but gave no indication of payment.
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