A total of over 340 officers from the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) have reportedly opted for retirement following a disciplinary committee review of their tenure. Naija News reports that this decision comes ahead of the final report submission of the committee set up by Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun....Read Full Article >>➤
The committee, which convened between Monday and Tuesday at the Force’s headquarters in Louis Edet House, Abuja, was aided by the Force Management in the screening process. While it remains unclear if the officers’ decisions to retire were influenced by potential sanctions, sources close to the committee confirmed their exit.
These officers, many of whom had surpassed the age of 60 or had been in service for more than 35 years, had reportedly failed to proceed with their retirement plans, which had been due.
Among those summoned for review was Assistant Inspector-General (AIG) Benneth Igweh, who oversaw Zone 7, as well as two Commissioners of Police and a senior police lawyer.
According to The Nation, it was confirmed that AIG Igweh had officially handed over his responsibilities to his successor, Mohammed Gumel.
The committee’s focus was on officers who were supposed to have retired since 2020 but had not done so due to various reasons, including the conversion from rank-and-file to senior officer positions without undergoing necessary training at the police academy.
A source familiar with the screening process explained that the committee had completed its review by Tuesday and that over 340 officers had submitted their retirements.
“Many of them are senior officers. Those who are aware that they were supposed to go last year have also gone. I am not sure if anyone was penalised
“It was the committee and the force management team that were allowed to be part of those that screened the officers.
“They are those that were supposed to have retired from 2020 till date. They did not alter their age but most of them converted from rank and file to senior officers and did not go to the police academy.
“The rule is that if you want to move up as a senior officer, you have to resign as an officer in the rank and file. But most of them did not do that. They were operating on the two levels.
“There is a retirement age for them as a constable and a retirement age for them as senior officers or commissioned officers,” the source stated.
Furthermore, the Police Service Commission (PSC) had previously ordered the immediate retirement of senior officers who had exceeded 35 years of service or reached the age of 60.
According to PSC’s Head of Press and Public Relations, Ikechukwu Ani, the decision was revisited after an earlier plenary meeting in 2017, which led to a revision of the retirement guidelines.
The PSC, in a statement issued after their meeting on January 31, 2025, affirmed that the policy contradicted earlier rules and now required all officers meeting the age or service thresholds to retire immediately.
The decision was conveyed to the Inspector-General of Police for action.
While some critics questioned the timing of these retirements given IGP Egbetokun’s tenure extension by President Bola Tinubu, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), clarified that the President’s actions were within the bounds of the law.
...Read Full Article >>➤
Be the first to comment