A human rights group, Defenders of Nigerian Citizens (DNC), has urged the Nigeria Police Force and the Police Service Commission to fully implement court orders reinstating 455 compulsorily retired police officers, including posting them to duty and paying their entitlements.
The DNC Coordinator, Aliu Adeifa, made the appeal in a statement issued on Wednesday in Akure, expressing concern over what he described as the slow implementation of the court orders. He said the affected officers, graduates of Cadet Assistant Superintendent of Police Courses 18, 19 and 20 at the Nigeria Police Academy, Kano, had been sent for an induction course in Jos, Plateau State, but were yet to be fully reinstated.
The group noted that the National Industrial Court in Abuja had ordered the police authorities to reinstate the officers and that the Court of Appeal had affirmed the ruling.
Adeifa said the group was monitoring developments concerning the reinstatement process and called on the police authorities to ensure full compliance with the court orders.
“We at DNC are observing developments in the Nigeria Police Force regarding the reinstatement of some senior officers.
“We understand that the affected officers are undergoing the induction course, but we appeal to the police authorities to respect the court orders and ensure that nothing distracts from their full implementation,” he said.
He added that the officers should be posted to their respective duties after completing the induction course and paid all their outstanding entitlements.
Adeifa, however, suggested that officers above 60 years of age or those already receiving pensions could be excluded from the reinstatement process, while officers covered by valid court judgments should be allowed to complete the course and resume duty.
“If the number is too high, instead of bringing everybody together, the police can remove those who are above 60 years and those already on pension, and allow those with valid court judgments to complete the course and get their postings,” he stated.
The DNC coordinator also called on President Bola Tinubu to make police welfare a major priority of his administration, saying better remuneration, adequate logistics, decent housing and other welfare packages were necessary to motivate officers and improve their performance.
“Our findings show that the police force is facing serious challenges, particularly in the area of welfare. They need good remuneration, sound logistics, housing and other welfare packages.
“As the government has done for the Nigerian Army, let it do the same for the police so that we can have a better and safer Nigeria,” he said.
