Police officers who took part in the barely two-week-old Kogi State Gubernatorial Election of 2023 have protested the Force’s failure to pay up their allowances.
Recall that 40,000 officers were deployed to allay concerns about potential violence and disturbances during the exercise, as revealed by Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Habu Sani.
More than a thousand cops traveled from Osun State to Kogi State for election duty, according to a police source who would rather remain unknown.
The source further said that the police had not yet approved the allowances for 500 of the 1000 officers who served on special assignment and took part in the Kogi State gubernatorial election in 2023.
The source claims that since last week, some police personnel have received credit alerts; those who have not have not been credited were abandoned and not given an explanation for the hold-up.
I humbly request that the Inspector General of Police take action in this case. Any high-ranking official accountable for the postponement ought to face consequences. Our spouses and children rely on us to help them survive. The source continued, “We have fed during the election with our own money.”
A police officer who wishes to remain anonymous told WITHIN NIGERIA over the phone that he was one of the police officers deployed for the Kogi guber election in 2023, and that he has not gotten any compensation since then.
The officer revealed that the deployed officers were not provided with food or housing.
We used our money to purchase food. While some people slept on the main road, others slept inside of operating automobiles. He went on to say, “Our welfare was zero, and it is even more annoying that we haven’t been paid in less than two weeks after the poll.”
The officer added that he had run out of money while serving in Kogi and returned home empty-handed to his family of four.
This reporter was informed by another officer that if he had known that his allowances would not be paid after the election, he would have lied and claimed to be ill.
I met my daughter in the hospital after returning home. She has typhoid, and since our allowances haven’t been paid, I don’t have any money to buy medication because I’ve used up my money for transportation and feeding. The officer narrated, “I implore the Inspector General of Police to get involved in this matter.”
The barely 39-year-old Simeon (not real name) told WITHIN NIGERIA that police officers’ experiences during the Ondo guber poll are similar to their current experiences.
Only half of the officers who traveled from Osun to Ondo were paid. Others have not been resolved as I speak to you. Right now, we are going through the same thing. He continued, “I just hope that there will be a solution to our own problem.”
Simeon called on the Inspector General of Police and other senior police officers including the Osun State Commissioner for Police to intervene and come to their aid.
When contacted, the spokesperson of Osun State Police Command, SP Yemisi Opalola disclosed that the matter is a national one not limited to the Command and officers in other states are affected too.
Opalola who urged WITHIN NIGERIA to contact Muyiwa Adejobi, the force spokespersom for more information further disclosed that a number has been provided for affected officers to contact for possible solutions.
Muyiwa Adejobi, the force spokesperson who later responded via text after several calls were ignored. Has any other agency paid its personnel? He inquired via SMS.
The reporter told him that some police officers have been paid and wondered why others were not paid. As at the time of writing this report, the force spokesperson has not responded.
Multiple calls and SMS messages including Whatsapp forwarded to Muyiwa Adejobi, the force spokesperson were not replied nor returned as at the time of filling this report.