Police in Ekiti State protest against ‘non-payment’ of election allowance

FG trains 100 S’West women in ICT
Policemen deployed from Ekiti State to Kogi for the November 16, 2019 governorship election are grumbling over alleged refusal of the authorities to pay their allowances.

The 225 policemen said their names were allegedly expunged from the list of those that were due for payment, despite risking their lives day and night to ensure adequate security during the election.

They expressed shock that the police authorities had refused to pay them a month after the election, while their counterparts from other states received theirs, which fuelled suspicion of embezzlement.

Briefing journalists under anonymity, the aggrieved police officers called on the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu, to investigate the cause of the delay.

Senior officers above the rank of sergeant were reportedly paid N90,000 for the election duty, while the rank and file got N40,000.

A sergeant, who spoke on behalf of the aggrieved policemen, said, “Two batches were deployed for the election in Ekiti. The Ekiti command was expected to mobilise 500 policemen, but there was a shortfall.

“The Commissioner of Police, Mr. Asuquo Amba, deployed 300 policemen about 10 days to the election. When there were complaints, another 150 were drafted to Kogi on the order of the CP five days to the election.

“Our investigation indicated that half of those who were deployed from Ekiti, numbering over 200, were excluded from payroll.”

But when contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Ekiti Command, Mr. Sunday Abutu, denied the allegation.

He said all the entitlements due to the police that were deployed for the Kogi election had been paid.

“I am not aware of this. To the best of my knowledge, all the entitlements regarding Kogi issue had been paid.

“Let me also say that there was no protest anywhere. Nobody had protested, and whoever has any issue should follow the normal channel,” the police spokesman said.

However, the Federal Government has embarked on the training of 100 women from the South West geopolitical zone in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to bridge the technological gap between men and women.

It said that the ICT imbalance was limiting women’s access to economic opportunities and empowerment that could make them relevant and to compete favourably with their male counterparts.