Retired police officers under the aegis of the Kwara State Chapter of the Association of Retired Police Officers of Nigeria (ARPON) staged a peaceful protest in Ilorin on Monday, calling for their immediate exemption from the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).
The retirees described the scheme as problematic since its inception and argued that police personnel on the CPS should be exited from it, just like senior officers who attained the rank of General-equivalent in the force and are currently exempt.
They called for the establishment of a dedicated Police Pension Board to manage the pensions and gratuities of police personnel, similar to structures in place for other security agencies.
During the protest, the former officers carried placards with various inscriptions, including: “President, NASS and IGP should honourably exempt the police from the CPS,” “Establish Police Pension Board to manage gratuity and pensions,” and “Mr President: Improve Police Welfare for Effective Service Delivery.” One of the placards also read: “If CPS is so good, why did AIGs, DIGs, and IGs exempt themselves from the scheme?”
The group also urged the federal government and the National Assembly to fast-track the legislative process for the disbursement of the N758 billion pension shortfall owed to security agencies. According to them, payment had earlier been scheduled for June 2025, but there has been no update, causing further distress to retirees.
They appealed to the National Assembly to expedite action to ease the hardship faced by retired police officers and enhance welfare for both serving and retired personnel.
