Court orders police to pay retirees N5.7m, 10percent pension benefits

Police to pay N700,000 litigation cost

In Industrial Court in Lagos has ordered the Police to pay a retired policeman, Inspector Samson Amadasun, his N5.74 million pension and gratuities.

The court also ruled that the Police should pay the retiree10 per cent interest on the arrears of salaries, pension and gratuities from July 2012 till date and N700,000 as a cost of litigation.

The court stated that falure to pay the arrears within 30 days will result to additional 21 per cent.

Amadasun had in February, last year sought redress from the court against his employer, the Police Service Commission, Inspector-General of Police, the Pension Department, Nigeria Police and the National Pension Commission (PenCom) for unjustly and unlawfully withholding his salary arrears, pension, gratuities and other benefits since he was reinstated and retired on July 27, 2012.

Counsel to the retiree (claimant), Kehinde Bamiwole of Kehinde Hassan Bamiwole & Co. in the claimant's final written address, said the retiree was enrolled into the Nigeria Police on January 1, 1974.

He stated that he rose to the rank of Corporal in 1980 and between 1983 and 1984, he was promoted Sergeant. He was promoted Inspector of Police in 1994.

He said the claimant was suspended and dismissed from the services of the Police on the December 15, 1997 but was later given a letter, stating that he had been reinstated.

According to him, the defendants realised the injustice meted out to the claimant who did nothing wrong before he was suspended, dismissed, reinstated and later retired on September 27, 2012.

He said: "The claimant thereafter made formal demands for the payments of his salary arrears from December 1997 to July 2012 together with his pensions, gratuities and other entitlements. The claimant made all efforts to get his entitlements paid.

"One DCP Ayo Akinsanmi of the defendants even wrote a letter on the claimant's behalf in order for the salary arrears, pensions and gratuities to be paid.

"One Elochukwu Nwakwo Esq. appeared for PenCom, the 4th defendant in March 2015 and did promise the court that all the accrued of the claimant shall be paid upon the provision of some documents by the claimant.

"The claimant made efforts and collected all the documents from appropriate offices of the first defendant, the Nigeria Police four good times, but neither verification nor payment was made to the claimant on his accrued interests from 1974 to 2004 when the repealed Pension Reform Act, 2004 came into existence and the claimant's benefits from 2004 till he was retired in 2012.

"The said Act introduced Contributing Pension Scheme (CPS) for the payment of retirement benefits of employees in the country. The Act has been repealed with Reform Act, 2014.

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