Social commentators and analysts have dismissed the recent 20 per cent increase in the salary of the police in Nigeria, arguing that it was just a cosmetic action that would not lead to any change in the attitude of the police in their official engagements....CONTINUE READING
The announcement, which came through the Minister of Police Affairs, Alhaji Maigari Dingyadi, disclosed that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the new welfare package, including a 20 per cent increase in allowances, for personnel of the Nigeria Police.
Dingyadi disclosed this in Abuja while speaking to newsmen at the end of the weekly virtual FEC meeting at the State House, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.
In his reaction, Barrister Alaowei Ebikonbowei Cleric, Chairman, Board of Trustees (BoT), Centre for Human Rights and Anti-Corruption Crusade (CHURAC), described as a welcome development the 20% increase in the salary of the Nigeria Police.
According to him, “I commend the government for the initiative. However, the increments will not stop the corrupt practices in the force.”
He, however, stressed that “The salary increment in itself will not promote better service delivery. They still need operational support by way of buying better equipment for them.
“Even with the increase of salaries by 20%, police officers will still be extorting road users on the roads. In all, I have to commend the FG for this laudable initiative.”
Comrade Gbenga Komolafe, a social activist and General Secretary, Federation of Informal Workers’ Organisations of Nigeria (FIWON), maintained that at best, the gesture to increase Police salary at this time could only be said to amount to a symbolic attempt to be seen to be doing something about the generally known fact that the Police’s poor pay is one of the many reasons a lot of policemen had gone rogue.
Comrade Komolafe, Co-Convener, Coalition for Revolution (CORE), asked: “What does 20 per cent of extremely poor pay amount to, especially in the light of extreme price increase of literally all categories of the most essentials in this country? Like it has been noted by various commentators, we are already in a near-famine situation.
“Take rice as an example, a popular staple in Nigeria, the price has gone up over 110 per cent in the last one year; electricity, fuel prices, regressive taxes like VAT, etc, have all gone up. Even sachet water has galloped from N5 to N20 per sachet, a 300 per cent increase.
“So, what would 20 per cent increase amount to? And we are not even talking about the extremely deplorable living quarters of policemen as well as the foul-smelling police stations where they work.
“Like the situation is with most sectors of the economy, ‘workers’ pay in Nigeria today amount to mere starvation wages.
He stressed: “There is need for real structural changes in the economic system to check serious leakages to massive official corruption, unnecessary subsidies in the oil and gas sector as a result of the refusal to invest in local refining capacity in the last 20 years leading to massive importation of petroleum products and massive loss of revenues.
“The loss becomes unquantifiable when the value added by way of industrial raw materials supplied by the collapsed refineries to local industries but which are now lost is added, a situation that has led to the fold-up of hundreds of big companies such as Michelin and Dunlop.
“Serious government investment in that sector alone would lead to a massive leap in foreign exchange saving capacity and better government ability to invest in social sectors such as education, social housing, public healthcare, basic infrastructures and this automatic rub off well on everybody including the Police.
“The oil and gas sector if carefully managed would have helped to beat down inflation, creation of massive jobs, local value-added and better capacity of government to remunerate its workers, including policemen very well.
“The 20% increment of police salary is adding petrol to fire in a non-performing economy of Nigeria, as they do not have purchasing power with the total payment of the twenty per cent increment.
“What is needed is fixing the economy and paying them living wages that will not require the twenty per cent increment.”
Comrade Aluh Moses Odeh, National Leader, All Middle Belt Youth Forum (AMBYF), in his reaction, noted that the 20% increment was not captured in the 2022 budget, although the president could still, through a supplementary budget, do that.
“But how soon can this be with January a few days away? You can see that before the starvation salary increment, our police have been plunged into huge debt.
“What the Muhammadu Buhari’s government should do is to make the economy work, not throwing money here and there at people.
“The government should let police earn living wages and Nigerians will experience optimal performance of the police. Until the government is held for contingent liability of any percentage increase in inflation and devaluation of the naira, any increment made is pouring water on stone,” he said.
Hon. Dennis Adikwuru, a political activist and a leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Aboh Mbaise area of Imo State, stated: “The increase in the salary of police personnel is a welcome development and long expected.
“The role of the police in the civil society is enormous and deserving of commensurate reward by the government.
“Unfortunately, successive governments have given more attention to the military with huge budgetary allocations going on welfare, arms purchases and infrastructural provisions.
“However, the government has to improve on the provision of barracks with functional amenities and other welfare benefits to the police force.
“If this is taken care of, the police personnel owe reciprocal service delivery in accordance with the responsibilities assigned to the police.”
Rev. Dr RexKennedy Saltlove, President/Executive Director, Citizens Rights and Empowerment Advocacy Initiative (CREMA Initiative), said the 20% increase in police salary was a welcome development that had been long overdue.
According to him, “we believe this increase is a fall-out of the #EndSARS protest in which the youth demanded better working conditions for the police to stop them from harassing law-abiding citizens.
“When you compare it with the Ghanaian police that is paid N200, 000 equivalent monthly and its counterpart in Nigeria receives paltry N48, 000, we know we still have a long way to go.
“As per it making the police personnel better in discharging its obligations, I won’t give a blanket assurance that it would. While it would improve the welfare of the police, the police need a mental overhaul and re-engineering as per its discharge of duty and relationships with fellow citizens.
“When they begin to see the sanctity of lives and dignity of citizens as sacrosanct in the discharge of their duty, that is when any increase in salary and welfare will make sense in their discharge of their service.”
Dingyadi had said that the increments would take effect from January 2022, adding that other packages announced by the Federal Government included tax waiver for junior officers with effect from October 2021 and payment of outstanding funds for uninsured personnel between 2013 and 2020.
According to him, FEC also approved a review and upgrade of the take-home pay of police personnel in the country.
Dingyadi recalled that in October 2020, Nigeria was rocked by #EndSARS protests and Mr President addressed the country and appealed for calm.
He said the president also promised a review of the remuneration of police officers to enhance their take-home pay in recognition of the services they render to the country.
