Pay us our salary arrears, policemen promoted to ASP…demands of IGP

 Taiwo Jimoh

IGP

Policemen promoted to the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police, (ASP) 2017 batch, have called on President Muhammadu Buhari to order the Inspector-General of Police, Muhammad Adamu, to pay their promotion salary arrears.

One of the aggrieved policemen, who spoke with our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said: “The injustices the Nigeria Police Force, (NPF), the Presidency and the Police Service Commission (PSC) have visited on us is so unfair. We were promoted in 2017, but till date we have not been paid our arrears of the promotion. In fact, some of our colleagues have died while waiting for their arrears to be paid.”

Another policeman, buttressing the story of his colleagues, said: “We have not received our promotion arrears even before the implementation of Integrated Police Payroll Salary (IPPIS). The money we are supposed to receive is over N400, 000, but till date, we have not received the money in Lagos State Command, while some other states have been paid theirs. What we are experiencing has never happened in the history of the Nigeria Police before. We want the Presidency, the PSC and the Ministry of Police Affairs to tell us why the IGP paid some commands and left us out those of us in Lagos State. We don't want the IGP to go on retirement with our arrears. We also want to receive our money before we retired. Many of us are near retirement.”

These policemen alleged that the cause of this present predicament was due to corruption in the Nigeria Police Force.

They said: “We heard from a reliable source that those at the budget office are conniving with some senior officers to spend our arrears. We are appealing to the Presidency to order the IGP to pay us our money. We are also calling on the Senate Committee on Police Affairs to intervene in this matter. They should compel the PSC and the IGP to release our money and pay us our entitlements. We’re asking, why is it that since 2017 till date, we cannot be paid those arrears? It is affecting us! We also have a family to take care and people depend on us. The money in question is somewhere. If the Presidency orders the police boss to pay us, we would be paid immediately. The Lagos State Command will do same. We want our money now!”