A woman who claims to be a retired Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) has adduced reasons why serving policemen may never refrain from taking bribes.
She hinged her conviction on the paltry monthly pension being paid Commissioners of Police and others in lower cadres upon retirement.
Esther Marcus spoke in a trending video while sharing what life looks like after 35 years of service.
Esther, who claimed to have joined the Force before she was 16 years old, disclosed that after retiring in 2018, she received N1.7 million as her gratuity and was subsequently placed on a monthly pension of N40,000.
She narrates, “My name is Esther Marcus, a retired DSP of the Nigerian Police Force. I retired on November 1, 2018. I just want to use myself as a case study. It’s applicable to every other police officer under this dirty contributory pension scheme.
“After serving for 35 years, though I joined the Nigeria Police Force at a very young age, I escorted a friend; unfortunately, she was not selected, but I was chosen because I was tall, even though I was not yet 16 when I joined the Nigeria Police Force.
“And when I retired in 2018, I waited for over a year before I was given N1.7 million… after 35 years. Then, after waiting for another three months, they started paying me N40,000 as my monthly pension after giving me N1.7 million after serving for 35 years. And that applies to every other policeman and policewoman who retired under this dirty scheme called the contributory pension scheme. That’s what we’ve been going through.
“This struggle has been ongoing for over 10 years now because when I retired in 2018, there was a police retirees’ meeting. They started it in 2017 or thereabouts, and all our cries to the Federal Government have been met with deaf ears. It’s not an insult, but that’s the truth.
“They are aware of what we’re going through. They’ve held about three or four public hearings on this case. But when the Army was retiring, the DSS and other paramilitary forces — there was nothing like a public hearing.
“The AIGs, DIGs, and IGs have exempted themselves from this dirty contributory pension scheme. They only left the Commissioners of Police downwards; they are the ones suffering it.
“The president cannot say he hasn’t heard this issue. He knows what is happening. Let me tell you, we will never stop fighting because even those coming behind us… you cannot just see pure injustice and not fight against it. It’s not possible.
“How do you expect me to survive on N40,000? That’s for me as a DSP. We have two-star officers, and one-star officers, who are receiving N28,000. And you want them to survive on this? What offence did the police commit to deserve this ill-treatment?
“We will not stop fighting. What we are planning now is to go and occupy their National Assembly and call CNN to cover the whole programme.
“Anyone who is against us will not escape from this evil bondage. That person, that man, that group who doesn’t want the police to be exempted from this evil— they are vultures because a vulture only waits for its victim to die, then it comes to feed. And that’s what’s been happening.
“You want the police, knowing fully well that when they retire, they are going into hell; you want them to stop corruption? They will continue collecting. They will continue extorting. They will continue enriching themselves by whatever means they can.”
See the video:
