By BANNERNEWS Reporter
Retired Police personnel have faulted pension fund operators over claims that the Federal Government would need about ₦7 trillion to fund police pensions if the Force exits the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).
The officers said the claim, attributed to the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp), was misleading and aimed at frightening the government into retaining the police in a pension scheme they described as unjust and unsuitable for policing duties.
PenOp had recently placed advertorials in national newspapers warning that allowing the police to opt out of the CPS would impose a huge financial burden on the Federal Government.
Reacting in a joint statement, the police retirees dismissed the figure as baseless propaganda, accusing pension operators of prioritising fiscal arithmetic over justice, equity and national security.
They challenged PenOp to provide verifiable statistics to support the ₦7 trillion estimate, insisting that police retirement benefits should not be portrayed as the pillars of Nigeria’s economy.
The statement was signed by the National Coordinator, SP Christopher Effiong (rtd); National Legal Adviser, DSP Elder Ofem O. Mbang, Esq (rtd); General Secretary, ASP El-Nathan Jareh; ACP Bright Kakada, JP (rtd); and 21 other retired officers.
According to them, framing the issue purely as a fiscal burden ignores the peculiar realities of policing, which daily expose officers to death, injury and psychological trauma.
They warned pension operators against overstepping their mandate by venturing into fiscal and monetary policy matters, noting that such responsibilities constitutionally belong to the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The retirees reaffirmed their call for a total exit of the Nigeria Police Force from the CPS and the establishment of a Police Pension Board, warning that retaining the police alone in what they described as a “toxic” pension scheme amounts to policy hypocrisy capable of undermining national security.
If you want, I can also:
sharpen it further for front-page impact, or
adjust tone for official rebuttal / policy advocacy framing.
Police Retirees Dismiss N7 Trillion CPS Exit Claim As Scare Tactic
