Some of the personnel had recently cried out that their monthly salaries were being deducted by the authorities without explanations.
Some policemen have lambasted the Nigeria Police Force spokesperson, Muyiwa Adejobi, for attacking SaharaReporters over its stories revealing massive corruption in the security agency.
Some of the personnel had recently cried out that their monthly salaries were being deducted by the authorities without explanations.
They also expressed their displeasure over the failure of the police leadership to pay up the six months’ arrears of the new salary structure approved by President Muhammadu Buhari for the force since 2021.
The aggrieved officers said the approved police salary structure which its implementation supposed to have commenced in January 2022 only started in July 2022 with only one month arrears of payment.
“Please help us out, Nigeria government is not ready to pay our outstanding arrears, our Inspector-General of Police (Usman Baba) shifted the blame on IPPIS (Integrated Payment and Personnel Information System). However, we are confused, N30,000 was deducted from my salary in what was paid last month,” a police inspector had told SaharaReporters.
Former Nigerian Police Inspector-General, Abubakar Accused Of Fraud, Diversion Of Billions Of Naira Deducted From Policemen’s Salaries “To Buy Shares”
Oct 05, 2022
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Others also demanded a refund of N11,000 each deducted from their salaries while Mohammed Dikko Abubakar was the Inspector-General of the Nigeria Police Force.
They said they were coerced to part with the amount out of their meagre salaries in 2012 shortly after Abubakar took over from Hafiz Ringim.
The officers said though the former IGP claimed the money was meant to buy shares for all personnel, the billions of Naira generated were not used for that nor accounted for.
They accused Abubakar of corruption and urged all anti-graft agencies to investigate the matter.
“The man called MD Abubakar is one of the most corrupt IGPs in the history of the Nigeria Police Force; this man monetised all officers’ quarters to himself and his management team,” one of the aggrieved policemen had said.
“In 2012, he said he was going to buy shares for every police staff member. N11,000 was forcibly deducted from every police officer in Nigeria then.
“This man forced us to pay for the shares but since then, we don’t know where our money went to. Nigerians should help us to ask him what he used the billions of Naira generated for. Where are the shares he bought? Where is our money?” Another source asked.
Instead of addressing the issues raised by the personnel, the police spokesperson in a statement on Friday launched an attack on SaharaReporters.
He said both publications bordered on finance and were neither controlled actively by, or under the direct purview of the Nigeria Police Force.
“The NPF strongly condemns the spate of deliberate falsehood by the Sahara Reporters, particularly recent false publication against the incumbent Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Usman Alkali Baba, and another against a respected former IGP MD Abubakar. It is equally appalling that Sahara Reporters would ignore the ethics of professional journalism, and balanced reportage, and throw all caution to the wind in a bid to enjoy the thrills of sensationalism, albeit fleeting.
“Emphatically, it is instructive to note that both referred false publications border on finances which are neither controlled actively by, or under the direct purview of the Nigeria Police Force. In the first instance, salaries of Police officers, as with other public servants, are paid on the IPPIS platform from the office of the Accountant General of the Federation. The Inspector-General of Police is equally paid, like every other officer, from the same platform. Access to make deductions, if any, rests with the handlers of the platform.
“It is equally pertinent to note that the 20% increment approved by the Federal Executive Council affects only allowances and not basic pay which obviously explains the ignorance and mischief by Sahara Reporters, enforced by its failure to seek knowledge of the process before embarking on a wild goose chase.
“To set the record straight, in 2013, the Nigeria Police Force acquired a mortgage institution, Fokas Savings and Loans Limited (now known as Nigeria Police Mortgage Bank Limited – NPMB), to assist every policeman to get housing loans from the Federal Mortgage Bank at low interest rates. As part of the prerequisites to re-capitalise the bank and effect its change of name as stipulated by law, the then IGP directed that the ownership of the bank be thrown open to all police personnel to buy into the shares of the bank.
“Subsequently, sensitisation activities were carried out and subscription forms distributed. Deductions for the shares were made from the account of the subscribers and accrued money remitted directly to the CBN. Shares certificates were thereafter issued and made available for pick up at the various branches of the NPMB and other designated police offices for the 151,238 police subscribers. The NPMB in furtherance of its mission has, in the past 9 years, given out loans to the tune of 4.1billion naira to police personnel in support of their house ownership aspirations. The Force hereby calls on reputable media houses to entrench the importance of professional standards in reportage particularly where unverified information is concerned.”
However, some policemen who spoke to SaharaReporters insisted their salaries are being deducted illegally.
They described Adejobi as an embarrassment to the Nigeria Police Force.
The officers said his response showed the police authorities did not care about their welfare.
“He would have kept mute; what was reported by SaharaReporters is nothing but the truth. You guys are doing a great job; the Nigeria Police Force on monthly basis deducts various amounts from our salaries without the knowledge of the Nigerian government,” one of the officers told SaharaReporters on Friday.
“The corruption is too much, the senior officers keep barking on the junior ones up till date, if you talk they will just dismiss you, this PPRO is corrupt as well, why are they still holding six months arrears if not for corruption?”
Another officer said, “Why didn’t Muyiwa Adejobi tell us how much he had received as dividend from the so called shares he was defending the former IGP on? Our morale are low, these people doesn’t care about us at all. They forced us to get this form then, you dismiss and ridicule junior officers for extortion on social media but keep stealing billions of Naira meant for these junior officers.”
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