Malik Yahya/
Police authorities have received commendations for steady promotions and rewards for hard work and gallantry in the Nigeria Police Force, amid protests by some officers.
Those who spoke with NewsmakersNG in Abuja commended the Police Service Commission (PSC) and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Usman Alkali Baba for boosting the morale of officers which was dampened by the ENDSARS protests in 2020 and restoring their fighting spirit.
NewsmakersNG learned that sometime last year, the PSC held a public hearing and invited members of the public to come and testify about the attitudes, behavior, and achievements of policemen.
Some officers at the time were recommended for promotion based on their performances in combating crime and criminalities which made their states safe.
Some of them received commendation letters from the IGP, AIG of the zones, Command CPs, members of the media, the general public, traditional institutions, and entire communities where policemen are securing.
It was the first of its kind under this IGP and his PSC team that the public are allowed to access and scrunise the police. Those with bad feedbacks, the bad eggs in the police were sanctioned as well.
Going by the development, the PSC approved the special promotions but not all the ranks were released by the IGP.
Some officers however kicked against the promotion, alleging without evidence that bribes were received in the process. They also claimed that junior officers are being placed above their seniors through special promotions that are also backdated.
The officers who issued a statement signed by one Chijioke Okonkwo claimed that beneficiaries paid $10,000 each under the immediate past PSC leadership.
“That’s a lie,” an officer who spoke on condition of anonymity told NewsmakersNG. “Where will policemen see such money to pay as a bribe for promotion? How much is our salary? The ongoing exercise has been very transparent, and the authorities should be commended. Don’t mind the blackmailers, the IGP should go on with his good work.
“When policemen commit crimes, they are punished, and when they perform above expectations, they are rewarded. That’s the way it has always been, and that is how it should be. The IGP should not be distracted.”
Another officer said, “When did police bribe rise from N20 to $10,000? Hard work pays as they say, special promotions are meant to ginger and appreciate officers based on gallantry and exceptional behavior that brings pride to the Nigerian government and police force in general.
“Lazy officers who spent their entire life in cowardice must not be allowed to kill the morale of the force with sentiments, jealousy, and negative allegations. Special promotions are a culture of the Force and every IGP, serving and retired benefited from it which signified their outstanding personalities and distinguished them amongst their equals.
“Excellency must be rewarded and has always been rewarded by a functional system. Laziness and cowardice are never rewarded as all fingers can never be equal.
“The President and Commander-in-Chief extended the tenure of the present IGP because of his commitment, uprightness, and upstandingness amongst past IGP’s. Courage, bravery, and exceptional behavior have a price.”
0