ABUJA — Retired police officers across Nigeria staged a nationwide coordinated protests on Monday, braving heavy rainfall in Abuja and marching peacefully in several states, as they demanded urgent removal from the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).
The protest, which unfolded at the gate of the National Assembly, saw elderly officers, many in their 60s and 70s, chanting, singing, and carrying placards under the rain, accusing the Federal Government of subjecting them to extreme poverty in retirement.
At the Abuja protest, which attracted nationwide attention, the retired officers were joined by activist and presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore, who lent his voice to their demands.
The protesters said they had endured years of neglect, poor pension payouts, and a system that strips dignity from those who dedicated decades to policing the country.
One of the participants, retired Chief Superintendent of Police, CSP Manir Lawal, condemned the pension scheme as exploitative.
“We are here to ask the government to remove us from the CPS,” he said. “The scheme is unjust. I am 67 years old. Many of us are sick, hungry, and can no longer meet basic needs. This is not the retirement we were promised.”
Lawal’s sentiment was echoed in other states. In Benin City, Edo State, the Edo chapter of the National Association of Retired Police Officers (under the CPS) held a press conference to highlight their worsening condition.
The state chairman, SP Anthony Nnachor (retd.), said that most of the retirees could no longer feed themselves or pay for medical care.
“We are here to let the whole world know what we are passing through,” Nnachor said. “We served this country for 35 years and more, yet many of us are dying every day due to hunger and illness.
What is the point of a pension that pays ₦25,000 or ₦30,000 a month after a lifetime of service, even for a retired Commissioner of Police?”
Nnachor explained that under the CPS, retirees only receive 25 percent of their total savings as a lump sum upon retirement, while the remaining 75 percent is spread thinly as monthly stipends through Pension Fund Administrators.
He described the arrangement as “a killer disease,” saying it has impoverished countless police retirees.
He appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to urgently intervene and remove all retired police personnel from the CPS.
“Let us join the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS) like the military,” he said. “We have been in this struggle since 2019. We are not asking for charity, we are demanding justice.”
Also addressing journalists at the briefing, the association’s Publicity Secretary, SP Johnson Oyameda (retd.), described the CPS as fraudulent and incapable of guaranteeing a dignified retirement.
He called on the National Assembly to expedite the passage of a bill that would officially remove police retirees from the scheme, noting that previous public hearings had failed to resolve the matter.
In Jalingo, Taraba State, another group of retired officers marched through the streets with placards that read: “Scrap Police Contributory Pension Scheme,” “We need our full gratuity,” and “Police are suffering in retirement.”
Their demands mirrored those voiced in Abuja and Edo, calling for total withdrawal from the CPS.
Ahead of the protests, the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, had directed all Commissioners of Police in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to provide adequate protection for the protesting officers.
In a statement issued by Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the IGP stressed the importance of respecting the retirees’ right to peaceful protest.
“The IGP has ordered that the rights of our retired officers who have chosen to protest must be protected,” the statement said. “This protest should serve as a model of dignified expression of grievance.”
As the protests gained momentum, the retired officers vowed to sustain their demonstrations until their demands are met.
They insisted that the government must prioritise their welfare and end what they describe as systemic injustice.
For them, the Contributory Pension Scheme represents not just financial hardship, but a betrayal of the years they spent serving and protecting the nation.
