Some of the affected inspectors in Lagos Police Command said Arase was denying them their right to promotion, after the Police Board has recommended them.
According to some of them, junior officers had repeatedly being promoted ahead of them. They are now forced to salute officers who were hitherto their junior.
They described the situation as “humiliating and embarrassing.” One of them said: “Once you’ve gone to Police Board for screening and you’ve been recommended to be promoted to ASP, nobody has the right to stop your promotion.
Some of us have been on this Inspector rank for over seven years. Now, Arase is using quota system. Many of our juniors had been promoted, while we are still on the same rank. Now, we’re saluting our juniors. It’s not right!
It’s demeaning and humiliating. This kind of nonsense can never happen in the military.” It was further learnt that about 11,000 Inspectors that were screened by the Police Board some years back, only 3,684 were promoted.
These Inspectors put the blame of their not being promoted to ASP at Arase’s doorstep. Another said: “I’ll soon retire. I have been praying that the promotion should come before my retirement. Many of our mates also retired last year while waiting to be promoted to ASP. They weren’t! They’ve now gone on retirement as Inspectors. This means their gratuities and entitlements will be those of Inspectors.”
One of them said: “Arase refused to promote officers that are due for promotion because he said police had no money to pay salaries that would come with their new ranks.
I don’t understand why IGP is denying officers who merited promotions their rights. He’s using quota system, but quota system is not ethical and if it must be used at all, it starts with the rank of Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) to Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP).
He keeps saying there’s no money. Is he the Federal Government? Why is he crying more than the bereaved?” Reacting to the aggrieved policemen, Arase said: “The last promotion was done without any religious or ethnic colouration.
The numbers of junior and senior inspectors, recommended by the Board for promotion to ASP, were more than what is on the establishment list of the police.
What we did was to give 100 to each state of the federation. The 100 are the best from each state of the federation. Even in my state, people are insulting and calling me all sorts of names. They said I’m not favouring my people.
I don’t believe in ethnicity, but in the best. With regard to that last promotion, I gave police the best. Those protesting should understand the system.
I can’t go more than the establishment list. Those who had not been promoted will soon be if the vacancies are there.” In Owerri, Imo State, the story is the same among policemen.
Many of them complained of being denied their right to promotion. The Imo State counterparts complained of shoddy treatment.
This was contained in a petition signed by 14 Police Inspectors drawn from the six geopolitical zones of the country under the aegis of Nigerian Police Inspectorate and Rank/File Association.
In the petition addressed to Arase, the Inspectors lamented: “Those of us who joined police in the year 1982, 1983 and 1984, who are about to retire, are still with the rank of Inspector up to date,
while cadets of 2000 and those enlisted as constables of the same 2000, have rose to the rank of ASP, DSP, SP and CSP because they have godfathers!”
According to the petition which was also forwarded to the National Assembly and the Police Service Commission (PSC),the Inspectors said that it appeared they were only good for patrol. They added that they were often forced by police authorities to fuel and maintain patrol cars with their meagre salaries.
They further explained that even when they were eventually invited to the Promotion Board, some unknown top officers, “selected their brothers and relations.
They were promoted to the rank of ASPII, leaving those who are overdue because we have no godfathers.”
Inspectors Ahmed Suleiman, Akunne Oriom, Femi Folarinmi, Hilary Ugwueze, Abu Shuluwa and others who signed the petition further listed their demands to include the approval of the promotion of Inspectors who meritoriously served Nigeria Police for 30 years and above; the harmonization of the disparities in police salaries across the country, review of the N1.3million gratuity benchmark of Inspectors that had served for 35 years.
They also wanted the Police authorities to buy fuel and maintain their vehicles without burdening them with that responsibility thus predisposing them to corrupt practices.
A police source at Edo Police Command said: “There was promotion examination conducted for officers within the rank of inspectors, who are to be promoted to ASP three years ago; it was not during the tenure of the present IGP and therefore he cannot be held accountable for a policy he didn’t initiate even though he is in charge of the force.”
Another source said: “I don’t think there’s any quota system. The truth is that if they promote all of the officers that are due for promotions, there wouldn’t be offices for them and no money to pay them.
Some officers will need to move or retire for others to move in through promotions.”
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