“As I am talking to you now, I’ve resumed to duty again for today. I was posted to the crime office in one of the divisions. We’re working diligently in line with the training we had during the training exercise and so far, we have been helping the Nigerian Police in terms of special duties, night patrols, and many more but when it gets to money, they’ll say we’re community Police. We were never told we won’t be getting paid.”
Mrs. Aregbesola Jumoke, a nursing mother, holds Higher National Diploma in Mass Communication at the Osun State Polytechnic Iree. She was a hairdresser in Kwara before securing the Special Police Constabulary job in April 2021. The joy after a month of training at the Police Training School in Ilorin prompted her to renege on her former side hustle (hair making). Sadly, she lost her hair-making saloon at the behest of her constabulary job.
She recounted, with deep anguish, how the refusal of the government to pay her salary has badly affected her and her family.
“I’m in a pathetic mood, I’m a nursing mother, my daughter is just growing up. For me, working without a salary has badly affected my family. I hardly get help from my friends because they believe I’ve got a job. It’s been six months of work without pay and when we run to our boss at the top, they have no answer to give us,” she narrated.
Jumoke is one of the officers of the Special Police Constabularies, a security initiative co-founded by the Federal/State govt in April 2021, following the recommendation of state police as a solution to the security challenges facing the country.
In Kwara State, following the recommendations from the multi-stakeholder security dialogue held in February 2020, the Kwara State Governor had on August 25, 2020, inaugurated the state Community Policing Advisory Committee (CPAC) in the state and charged them to engage local communities on matters of safety in the state.
The committee, however, comprises traditional rulers, religious leaders, security stakeholders and experts, and senatorial representatives.
The formation of Community Policing is a mundane proposal by the then Inspector General of Police, Adamu Muhammad in a bid to overcome security challenges in the country.
On May 4, 2021, the Kwara state Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq launched the recruited Constabularies (Community Police) at the passing out ceremony at the Police Training School (PTS), Ilorin.
Meanwhile, the Kwara State Government was commended for the impressive numbers of Constabularies it sponsored. Of records, Kwara State Government sponsored fifty (50) persons per Local Government while the Federal Government-sponsored sixteen (16) persons from each Local Government Area of the state totaling one thousand and fifty-six (1,065) persons sponsored by both Governments.
Six months after the establishment of the ‘nationwide community security initiative’, named Police Special Constabulary, in Kwara, officers of the team have expressed their plights over the non-payment of their monthly entitlement (salaries) by the state and the federal governments.
Speaking on their contributions since recruitment, Mrs. Jumoke disclosed that officers of the Police Special Constabulary have been helping the conventional police in the areas of special duties, night patrols and lots more, adding that those efforts are aimed at complementing the efforts of the Nigerian Police Force to burst criminal networks before they carry out their unlawful activities in the state.
“As I am talking to you now, I’ve resumed to duty again for today. I was posted to the crime office in one of the divisions. We’re working diligently in line with the training we had during the training exercise and so far, we have been helping the Nigerian Police in terms of special duties, night patrols, and many more but when it gets to money, they’ll say we’re community Police. We were never told we won’t be getting paid.”
When asked if she has another business apart from the community policing job, she said, “before I applied for the job, someone told me the job wouldn’t affect my hair-making business, because I’d not wanted to join. I was told I’ll be coming twice in a week to report to the police of any atrocities and crimes within my community but now things have changed, what I was told is not what I met. Now, I’m working fully as a police officer and almost work through the night every day.
“At least, before I got the constable job, I’ve a saloon and have my customers intact but since I got the job, I lost it all because I’ve to resume at work by 8am and leave around 6pm in the evening. Sometimes a call to night duty,” she added.
More Tales of Agonies and Sufferings
Information gathered by this Reporter revealed that there have been agonies and sufferings befalling the Police Constabularies across the nation particularly in Kwara State.
In a chat with the Spokesperson of the Special Police Constabularies in Kwara, SCP Ahmed Abubakar, he repeated the hardship he and his colleagues have been facing since their recruitment, appealing to come to their aids.
“As a family man, living for months without earnings or allowances has not been easy for me. I have a wife and siblings to cater for but where’s the money to do that. the majority of us are wallowing in deep suffering.
“I can say, for me, borrowing has been the order of the day to be able to meet up with my daily commitments. The majority of us spend nothing less than N300 daily for feeding and transportation to work and we have to resume work from 8 am till 6 pm. At least before I got this job, I was doing landscaping but now I’ve lost all my clients,” he lamented.
“Our families see us as a working-class but finds it hard to believe we aren’t getting paid, not even a stipend as an allowance not to talk of our entitlements.
“At a time, I depend solely on the token my division DPO do give to us from his pocket. And the borrowing from friends continues, hoping we will be paid one day.”
When asked about the successes of the Constabularies since their graduation, Abubakar said they have been filling the gap of shortage of manpower in the police force in the state.
“At least, before our recruitment, there has been a shortage of manpower in the police and to the Glory of God, we’ve been able to fill those gaps.”
President Buhari Approved N13billion for take-off, NEC Gave Nod
To confront the rising insecurity, the National Economic Council (NEC) presided by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, met at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa, in August 2020, to address the worsening security challenges and other issues of national importance; they okayed the sum of N13 billion naira approved by President Muhammadu Buhari for the Community Policing take off.
Arising from the NEC’s sixth meeting, which was virtual, Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule announced the approval of the sum of N13 billion cash by the President which he said the decision was taken after a report submitted by the ad-hoc committee on security and policing, headed by Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi.
Gov. Sule said: “Council resolved that the chair of the NGF (Nigeria Governors’ Forum) with two other governors would meet with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Finance Minister and the Inspector-General of Police to coordinate the proper utilization of the N13 billion funding of community policing in the states.
“State governments have been overwhelmed by insecurity expenditures and there is the need by the federal government to inject more funds to augment expenses by the states, among others,” Sule added.
The ad-hoc panel, according to him, met on August 4, 2020, to review the growing security challenges in the country and other issues of great importance. At the meeting, the governors also requested more funding for states and the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) to enable them to meet security obligations.
Controversy and Pleas Trail In
In another interview with this reporter, Shuaibu expressed worries concerning the words of the new IGP which he said has engraved great fears and concern in their hearts.
“I must say we’ve achieved a wonderful feat within the short period of our recruitment. It’s been six months now that our payment has not been coming as promised, but it comes to our dismay that the new IGP, Usman Alkali Baba was reported to have said during his one-day visit to Katsina that our job is a voluntary service and not payment bound.”
Shuaibu happily married in October 2019 with no kid yet, hailed from Kaiama local government in Kwara North. A graduate of Usman Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, holds a bachelor’s degree in Education and Economics. He is the G-one (General Number One) of the Special Constabulary Police, Kwara Command. Before he was appointed a Special Police Constabulary, he worked as an Economics teacher at Kunfayakun Islamic College, Kaiama.
When asked about his former job, Shuaibu explained that he resigned to give full attention to the Constabulary job and has been spending nothing less than N400 per day to transport himself to his community division.
He furthered that majority of his colleagues have quitted their other means of income upon securing the appointment pleading with the government to pay their monthly entitlement.
“However, We’re appealing to the Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq to come to our aid by paying the salary backlogs of our officers and clearly stated to us the terms of our recruitment. Also, we’re sounding our plea to Mr. President to fulfill his part of the agreement which indicates the unpaid monthly payment of six months for the 256 officers sponsored in Kwara.”
SDG’s viewpoint
Sustainable Development Goal 8 is aimed to “promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all”. This goal reaffirms the mutually supportive relationship between economic and social policies, full employment, and decent work while ensuring the economic sector of every country provides the necessary need for its citizen to have a good life irrespective of their background, race, or culture.
As it highlights the importance of labour rights for all, it also makes visible some significant tensions.
This correlates with the situation of Special Police Constabularies in Kwara whose labour rights have been denied since April 2021 amidst heightened hope of getting their jobs retained when recruited.
Kwara State Governor failed to talk
When contacted for comment, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s spokesperson, Rafiu Ajakaye, did not answer his calls, and text messages sent to his phone were unattended.
‘I don’t have any Comment’, says Kwara Police
Reacting to this development, The Public Relations Officer of the Nigerian Police Force, Kwara Command, SP Ajayi Okasanmi said, “I don’t have any comments on the matter in view please.”
‘Community policing officers are not going to be paid,” new IGP revealed
In another development, the new IGP, Usman Alkali Baba affirmed that community policing is not a job that qualified any person for remuneration. The IGP disclosed this while meeting with officers of the Nigerian Police Force at the Kwara Police Headquarters in Ilorin, on Wednesday, September 15, 2021.
Alkali, in his words, stressed that community policing is a voluntary work which is open to anyone ready to sacrifice and commited to the protection of the community while having other means of livelihood. He added that the community Policing officers are those who will support the police through their energy, time and commitment in order to ensure there is law and order in their immediate community.
He equated the community policing job to that of the local vigilantes differencing the former with a privilege of receiving proper training from the relevant authority.
“The community policing officers are supposed to be people who have other means of livelihood. It is not a paid job. Community policing officers are not going to be paid. It is for people who have the interest of protecting their community. The police community relation committee are those who supports the police from their pockets, time, energy and commitment.
‘We need more police officers in Kwara’, Gov AbdulRazaq tells new IGP
The Governor of Kwara State, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, while receiving the new IGP, Usman Alkali Baba, at a meeting held at the Presidential Lodge in Ilorin on Wednesday 15th of September, 2021, disclosed that the state has only about 3,000 Policemen who are currently security the state and lamented the shortage of Police Force in the state.
“Our challenges are enormous. Many officers of the two mobile squadrons here have been moved out. For the police, our requirement is about 8,000-10,000 men but we only have about 3,000 now. We definitely need more men on the ground here,” AbdulRazaq said.
‘We’re recruiting very soon,’ says new IGP Usman Alkali Baba
In a recording, the new IGP Usman Alkali while addressing Policemen in a meeting held at the Police Headquarters in Ilorin on Wednesday 15th of September, 2021, he declared that the Nigerian Police Force will be recruiting very soon. He further said the exercise will be for those to be trained and sent back to their various localities to combat security challenges facing them, emphasizing the need for sons and daughters from the states to participate.
“We’re going to start our recruitment exercise very soon. But this time around, it is for those of you that are citizens or indigenes. Mr. President has directed that the recruitment should be from all the 774 LGs of Nigeria which they will be trained and deployed appropriately to their respective communities.
“You must know the place you’re policing, and the better people who will know those places are those who come from that community or society. And that’s why we want sons and daughters from the state to participate.”
However, the pronouncement of no remuneration and fresh recruitment by the New IGP sparked controversy as there are existing community police officers who were earlier engaged and are not yet being paid.