By Garba Ismail
It will be stating the obvious to say that regularly improving the welfare of the police, especially in emerging democratic societies such as Nigeria, is sine qua non to an effective and efficient crime detection, prevention, control and general law enforcement.
The bane of effective policing generally include but not limited to institutional challenges such as inadequate manpower (both in strength and expertise), absence of or insufficient continuing education and training, inadequate equipment, and poor welfare condition of service of the average policeman.
But of these lot, it cannot be gainsaid that poor welfare condition of service remains an area that continues to warrant the most attention of researchers -the belief being that a well looked after police force necessarily leads to effective policing.
Here in Nigeria, low morale resulting obviously from an entrenched poor welfare system has led virtually to the institutionalization of a dispirited police force. But the much needed light at the end of a bleak tunnel would come when, on December 15, 2021, in a morale boosting effort, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved a new welfare package – including a 20 per cent increase in allowances, for personnel of the Nigeria Police.
Also included in this package are tax waivers for junior officers, to take effect from October 2021, the payment of outstanding funds for uninsured personnel between 2013 and 2020 and a general review and upgrading of the take home pay of police personnel in Nigeria. It is common knowledge that the dismal take-home package of the Nigerian Police is directly responsible for the alarming rate of corruption in the force and especially to the police-society acrimony owing to the rampant extortion of civilians by personnel.
The Nigeria police is about the least paid among corresponding security agencies in the country and definitely among the least remunerated even in Africa, a factor experts say inevitably fuels corruption, extortion, and abuse of power especially by the force‘s rank and file who interface regularly with the civil populace.
A Nigerian police constable is said to earn between N22, 000 and N27, 000, depending on his length of service and accommodation plan, while a sergeant’s pay is about N30, 000, after deductions of tax, accommodation allowance and others. A Police Inspector on the other hand earns around N50, 000 monthly.
It is no wonder that across Nigeria, police officers and especially their rank and file, live in abject squalor within and outside the barracks. Daily, they use dilapidated or even uncompleted buildings and broken-down vehicles, and also report to mostly derelict and unfurnished work environments.
Therefore the approval of a new welfare package for the Nigeria police is no doubt a most welcomed development and a fulfilment of the promise made by President Muhammadu Buhari to review the remunerations of policemen with a view to reasonably matching their patriotic duty with their take home pay.
The heralder of this end of year package was none other than the indefatigable Minister of Police Affairs, Alhaji Maigari Dingyadi, who disclosed this in Abuja while speaking to newsmen at the end of the FEC meeting at the State House recently. Dingyadi said: “We have tried to create a situation where their (police) take home pay will be enhanced through increase in their allowances.
The Minister listed the police personnel allowances and approvals that have been reviewed upward to include duty tour allowance, which was raised to six per cent of the new take home pay. Council he said, also approved the payment of N1.12 billion for the settlement of outstanding benefits of personnel for the uninsured period between 2013 and 2020, which had not been covered under the group personal insurance programme.
This is in addition to approval for release of over N13billion for the payment of outstanding death benefits of 5,472 personnel within the uninsured period of 2013 to August 2021, not covered by the Group Life Insurance; N1.2 billion as payment of outstanding burial expenses of personnel (for the) period of January 2012 to 2021; annual insurance premium of N750million, and, N4.8billion for repairs and replacement of damaged police infrastructure in future budgets, starting from 2022.
Others plausible efforts to boost the morale of the police force include the approval for the increase of the current rent subsidy, to N61 billion; increase is 40 per cent of the consolidated policy salary structure (CONPOST) in the sum of N78.3 billion, that is to say an increase of about N16.4 bn.
There is also the approval of an additional six per cent shift duty allowance for officers on levels 01 to 14 and with effect from 2022, and the sum of about N10 billion as supervisors allowances for officers on levels 15 and above.
Interestingly, government gave approval for the payment of about 20 per cent of CONPOST as peculiar allowance. It is a new allowance created to improve take home pay and boost morale of the Nigeria Police.
As it is often said, one good turn deserves another. In addition, ‚to whom much is given, much is expected‘! It is the hope of Nigerians that the Nigeria Police will reciprocate these lofty gestures by turning a new leaf in the all-important task of providing effective crime detection, prevention, control and general law enforcement.
So also the Police should as well improve its relations with the general public to justify “ Dan Sanda Aboki Kowa”.
The public should also consider and acknowledge the necessary sacrifices by the Police in maintaining law and order for all and give them the necessary cooperation and assisting them with needed information to carry out their assignments.
– Ismail, a retired civil servant, writes from Kaduna