Protesting retired police officers have been reassured by Senate President Godswill Akpabio that they will be formally removed from the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) by the national legislature next week.
Akpabio welcomed the retirees at his office on Thursday. The retirees have been demonstrating against their inclusion in the program at the National Assembly Complex entrance for weeks.
Akpabio declared that the Senate will immediately support the House of Representatives, which had approved a bill exempting the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) from the CPS.
According to a statement released by Jackson Udom, the Senate President’s special assistant on media, Akpabio stated that the policy was “not well thought out” and that it had caused needless difficulty for police officers who put their lives in danger to protect the nation.
It is necessary for you to leave the gate. From a legal standpoint, that issue has been resolved,” he stated.
“We will agree with the House of Representatives’ actions on Tuesday of next week and create an Act that will remove you from the Scheme.”
The president of the Senate expressed confidence that President Bola Tinubu, “being a listening president,” would enact the measure.
According to him, the plan is “certainly not good for security personnel.”
Akpabio questioned why other security agencies, such as the military, DSS, and NIA, were exempt while the police remained under the CPS.
“I see no reason why the Police should stay while those in the echelon of the service are out if the Military, DSS, NIA, and others have left,” he continued.
“You all battled insecurity together. What benefits the goose also benefits the gander. From the IG to the final constable, we will make sure that the scheme is the same.
Nigeria frequently “copies policies without thinking through their implications,” he claimed, adding that the CPS has harmed a large number of police retirees.
The retirees’ leader, Mannir Lawal Zaria, expressed hope that their long-standing pension requests will soon be settled and thanked the senate president for giving them a chance to speak.
