Will there be an end to the despicable row over the way pension in the Nigeria Police Force has been handled over the years?

This appears rhetorical as once again, Nigerians were treated to another intriguing demonstration by retired policemen over poor treatment under the Contributory Pension Scheme, CPS.

On July 22, 2025, millions of Nigerians watched in disbelief as ex-officers gathered in Abuja and faraway Calabar, Cross River State capital, to protest and lament systemic injustice meted on them through payment of paltry N30,000 monthly stipends after 35 years of service.

Their anger was palpable as the traumatised men decried what they described as “humiliating and dehumanising” retirement benefits under the CPS.

The protesters said many retirees received as little as N2 million after serving the nation for 35 years. This has reignited national attention on the plight of former police personnel.

The exasperated former servicemen asked the authorities to dismantle the current pension structure, insisting that the CPS is exploitative and unjust.

Under the current arrangement, a pensioner is paid 25 percent of his or her total contribution at retirement. The balance of 75 percent is retained by the pension fund administrator who dishes it out at a monthly stipend that obviously would be inadequate to sustain most families.

While we appreciate the indispensability of pensions, it is, however, pertinent to ask how retired servicemen or any pensioner for that matter can survive on N45,000, an amount which Yahya Musa, one of the protesters, said he receives monthly? There are others who receive as low as N30,000 per month.

We suggest that the authorities take a more dispassionate look at the issues surrounding police pension administration rather than an outright condemnation of the aggrieved ex-service men.

But more importantly, the CPS needs proper scrutiny even beyond the NPF.

Today, the programme is riddled with fraudulent practices including under and non-remittance of deductions by employers of labour.

Some of the ex-policemen protesters complained that their Retirement Savings Account, RSA, statements showed multiple years in which pension deductions were not remitted. The retirees accused the leadership of the Nigeria Police Force and pension administrators of deliberate mismanagement and manipulation of funds. They alleged that pension deductions had been made from their salaries for years but were not reflected in their final entitlements.

One retiree, holding up his statement of account, claimed that for over two years, no deductions had been paid into his pension account, leaving him shortchanged upon retirement.

Even in the private sector, the story is very much similar. Many companies fail to remit to appropriate fund managers monthly such that when employees leave for other organisations, they find it difficult to reconcile their accounts.

The Police Pension scheme is horrible. Over the years, many top officers had been indicted for fraudulent practices in pension administration.

We recall that on April 13, 2022, the Supreme Court affirmed the six years’ jail term imposed on a former Assistant Director in the Police Pension Office, John Yakubu Yusuf, who was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, over N22.9 billion fraud.

The apex court in a judgment read by Justice Tijjani Abubakar also ordered the convict to refund N22.9 billion to government coffers.

Yusuf was one of the six civil servants prosecuted for allegedly stealing N32.8 billion from the Police Pension Fund. He got a slap on the wrist as he was convicted and sentenced to two years’ imprisonment with an option of fine of N750,000 (Seven Hundred Thousand Naira only) by a Federal Capital Territory High Court presided over by Justice Abubakar Talba.

The EFCC, dissatisfied with the judgment, went to the Court of Appeal which found him guilty after he pleaded guilty and admitted to the fraudulent conversion of an aggregate sum of about N24 billion to his personal use. He was therefore sentenced to six years in prison and ordered to return the stolen N22.9 billion.

Yusuf appealed to the Supreme Court, and asked it to set aside his conviction and the order to refund N22.9 billion on the ground that the Court of Appeal judgment was a miscarriage of justice. But the apex Court upheld the decision of the appellate court, saying his appeal was frivolous, vexatious and devoid of merit.

We note that last July, the Inspector-General (IG) of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, had to order a comprehensive investigation into the allegations raised in a viral video by a retired Superintendent of Police concerning the welfare and retirement benefits of police pensioners.

The IG tasked the NPF Pensions Limited to urgently examine the claims, identify any possible lapses, and ensure that appropriate action is taken to address the concerns raised.

We believe it is high time the Police authorities took a decisive step and addressed the plight of its pensioners, many of whom have even died while waiting for their dues.

“The Police Pension scheme is horrible. Over the years, many top officers had been indicted for fraudulent practices in pension administration.”