From INIOBONG SUNDAY, UYO
Aggrieved police officers under the aegis of Concerned Police Inspectors in Nigeria, CPIN, took their protest march to the Correspondents Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Uyo, in Akwa Ibom State, lamenting the non- payment of 11 months salary arrears.
Leaders of the delegation drawn from different police formations who spoke on behalf of their colleagues on condition of anonymity said their crime- fighting morale had been dampened by the non-commitment to their welfare by the police authorities.
Those promoted from the rank of Inspector 11 to 1, he said, are over 1,500 officers.
They, therefore, 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 the harsh socio-economic realities on their families.
An appeal letter addressed to the IGP and copied to the presidency, National Assembly and the Police Service Commission, PSC, reads: “We are over 1,500 personnel of the Nigeria Police Force, NPF, Akwa Ibom State Command, promoted from Inspector 11, to Inspector 1, by the IGP effective September 10, 2023, with a signal dated March 21.
“Till date, we are still collecting our old salary as junior Inspectors instead of senior Inspectors since the IGP gave us the confirmation letters. We have nowhere to run to than to the federal government who is our employee.
“We are uncomfortable with this inhuman treatment by our IGP, after putting many years to serve our country but our entitlements are being denied.
“We can no longer feed our families or pay their bills due to the high cost of essential items in the market. It is difficult to believe that after being celebrated with our families for being elevated to another level, the IGP is deliberately short paying us for 11 months now, and by calculation, the shortfall is over N550,000 each.
“When we contacted our pay officers, they said IPPS has been returning our voucher because there is 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, Egbetokun had been promoting officers without commensurate payment of their financial accompaniments. The only signal we have been receiving from him, from Abuja, is dressing code, what are we going to use to buy uniforms if our due salaries have not been paid?”
An attached Inspectorate Confirmation of Appointment Letter signed by the Commissioner of Police in charge of Welfare, Rose Chollom Dung, on behalf of the IGP, conveyed congratulatory messages to the affected officers across all commands in Nigeria, but no indication of follow-up payment.
