Police men and women are planning to go on an unprecedented two-week warning strike across the nation beginning on March 26 in protest against poor working conditions, it has been learnt.
The morale of police officers is said to be at a low ebb, with many grumbling about poor salaries, a lack of genuine welfare benefits and outdated weapons.
They are also unhappy with the continuous killing of their colleagues by armed robbers and terrorists, without adequate compensation for their families. In a letter to the authorities, the representatives of the aggrieved police officers demanded improved conditions of service, particularly salary increase and provision of modern weapons as they tackle the security challenges facing the country.
The letter reads: “The Nigeria government lied about the increment of police salary on March 10, 2022. It has been observed with utmost dissatisfac tion how the Federal Government and the Minister of Police Affairs lied to the general public about the increment of our salaries. It has always been discussed on every occasion that the increment would be done since the incident of the #EndSARS protest that led to the loss of many lives of the men of the force.
“More so, it has been observed by the men of the force that there’s nothing good the Federal Government would do for the police, because they had already made an announcement that they’ve increased our salary which is not true. “With the lackadaisical attitude of the government and the Ministry of Police Affairs, it shows that there was nothing like a salary increment.”
The aggrieved police officers insisted they deserve to be treated with respect by the government as they protect almost every political personality. They lamented that they are treated like slaves despite their contribution to national development.
“We don’t have good salaries and our gratuities are very poor compared to what’s obtainable in other parts of the world,” they said. Asked to respond to the possibility of the force going on strike, acting Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), CSP Muyiwa Adejobi, told our correspondent that they would react to the story later. New Telegraph, however, learnt that the police hierarchy is worried and has accelerated the letter to the Minister of Police Affairs, Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi for his attention.
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