Retired police officers stormed the streets nationwide yesterday, protesting poor pension and other living conditions.
Aside from Abuja, the protest took place simultaneously in Edo, Plateau, Kwara, Taraba and Cross Rivers states, among others.
In Abuja, the retired police personnel who defied the downpour protested at the National Assembly entrance gate, where they were joined by another group of protesters, led by the convener of the #RevolutionNow Movement, Omoyele Sowore.
The retired police officers demanded, particularly, the removal of the Nigeria Police Force from the Contributory Pension Scheme, CPS.
The Inspector-General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun, in a swift reaction, however, stated that he was not opposed to the NPF’s exit from CPS, adding that the issue of poor retirement benefits is also a concern for serving officers.
At the entrance gate of the National Assembly, the protesters sang solidarity songs, demanding the removal of the NPF from the CPS, arguing that a situation where an average retired police officer takes home between N14,000 and N22,000 monthly as pension is unacceptable.
The demonstrators, comprising elderly ex-police personnel, held placards and chanted solidarity songs as they stood in the rain, insisting that their welfare and dignity had been neglected for too long.
Speaking during the protest, a retired Chief Superintendent of Police, Manir Lawal, called on the Federal Government to exit police retirees from the pension scheme, which he described as exploitative and unjust.
His words: “We are here to ask the government to remove us from the CPS. The pension scheme is exploitative and unjust.
“I am 67 years old. Many of us here are in our 60s and 70s. We have served this country faithfully and deserve to retire in dignity. This scheme has impoverished us. It is our right to demand better.”
Another protester said: “I am receiving N20,000 as pension after serving for 35 years. This is the receipt, how can anybody survive this very harsh economy with this, let alone children and family?’’
A retired ASP also said: “I am receiving N22,000. And I was an ASP (Assistant Superintendent of Police) before I retired.’’
Yet another retiree said at the protest ground: “I am receiving N18,000. I retired in 2010. And this has been what I have been receiving.’’
Also speaking with Vanguard, a retiree said: “My name is ASP Joshua Abdul. I am from Bauchi State. For nine months, they didn’t paid my pension. Many of our colleagues in Bauchi have died because of lack of money.
“They were paying them N 10,000, N12,000 and me, as a retired ASP, I receive N14,000.”
An officer who recently retired, said: “I retired from the Nigeria Police three months ago and I was called to come and sign a consent form for collection of my gratuity of just N3.6 million.
“I have served this country for over 15 years. This is disheartening when you hear our colleagues from sister agencies going home with something more tangible, some N30million, others N20million.”
The retirees, whose protest was peaceful, vowed not to leave the rain until their concerns were addressed by the leadership of the National Assembly.
To complement the efforts of the retired police personnel in Abuja, activist, Omoyele Sowore, led a protest March over poor welfare conditions and poor pensions of Nigeria Police personnel to Force Headquarters and subsequently to the National Assembly.
Chanting “Pay Police living wage and proper pensions,” the group brandished placards showing their demands for both serving and retired police officers.
Some of the placards had such inscriptions as “Decent Salaries Now,” “End Police Slavery,” “Pensions for Police Officers,” “Dignity for Those in Uniform,” among others.
As the protest in Abuja was on, a similar protest took place in Jos, the Plateau State capital, as the protesters were dressed in black outfits to symbolise grief, wielding placards with diverse inscriptions stating their grievances.
Over 300 retired police officers under the CPS in Plateau State took part in the peaceful protest.
The demonstration, held at the Police Officers’ Mess in Jos, highlighted the retirees’ growing frustration with what they described as a failed pension system that had left many destitute after decades of meritorious service to the nation.
In Ilorin, the retired police officers also staged a peaceful protest to demand immediate removal from the CPS and called on President Bola Tinubu to come to their rescue.
The angry retirees also called on the Federal Government and the National Assembly to fast-track the legislative process on the disbursement of the N758 billion pension shortfall owed security agencies, which ought to have been paid since June 2025.
In Benin City, some of the retired policemen protested on some streets of the city, saying what they were getting at the end of their retirement was not commensurate with what they and their employer, which is the Federal Government, ought to have contributed.
In Jalingo, the Taraba State capital, the protesters wielded banners and placards calling for an exit from the Police CPS.
‘’We demand total exit from the deadly Police Contributory Pension Scheme,’’ ‘’Scrap police contribution pension scheme,’’ ‘’We need our full gratuity,’’, some of the placards read.
In Calabar, Cross River State, despite downpour, retired police officers, under the CPS staged a peaceful protest, also calling on the Federal Government to exempt the Nigeria Police Force from the controversial pension scheme.
IG meets protesting retirees, denies opposing exit from CPS
Meanwhile, IGP Egbetokun, speaking with the aggrieved former officers at Force Headquarters, Abuja, expressed empathy for their situation, stating that the issue of poor retirement benefits is of concern to serving officers as well.
He said: “We all feel concerned. We empathise with you because we are also going to retire. I have been engaging at the highest level to ensure that something is done to improve the condition of the poor pensioner.”
Egbetokun disclosed that he had just come from a meeting with the National Security Adviser, NSA, Nuhu Ribadu, where the welfare of retired police officers was also discussed.
He said: “Even right now, I was just coming from a meeting with the NSA. The subject matter is the poor pension of retired officers. There are things we need to do to ensure your suffering in retirement is alleviated.
“There are a number of things we have done, steps that I have been taking, the details of which I would not like to disclose with the press present. But I just want to assure you that we empathise with you and we are not just folding our arms. We are doing a lot to ensure that something is done.
“Don’t allow the enemies of the police to use you. Be suspicious of those who pretend to be on your side. They may not mean well for you.”
Addressing the demand for the police to exit the CPS, Egbetokun said: “I am not opposed to your exiting the CPS, I’m not opposed to it. If exiting from CPS will solve the problem, I will go for it. But if it is difficult for us to exit CPS, what else can we do? We have been agitating, exit CPS, exit CPS. For the past 11 years, it has not worked.”
The IG also stressed that while past administrations had made efforts to pull the police out of the CPS, the process was beyond the powers of any individual Inspector-General of Police.
He said: “The agitation to exit the CPS has been on since 2014, 11 years ago. All previous IGs have tried their best to remove the police from the CPS but exiting it is beyond the power of any Inspector-General of Police.
“There are a lot of things that are involved but what we’re interested in is ensuring that our retired officers live a good life after serving the country for 35 years. That is what we want.
“Even while in the CPS, this is what I have said that people have misconstrued. They have misinterpreted it as meaning that it is not until you exit the CPS that you can earn a good pension. Even with the CPS, we can improve the operation and ensure that you are happy in retirement.
“There have been several efforts in the past to exit, and it’s not working. So, as IG, I started thinking that we have to start looking for alternative ways of addressing the challenges. And it’s these alternative ways I’m working on that people are misinterpreting as though I am opposing your exit from CPS.”
