Retired police officers under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) have occupied the headquarters of the National Pension Commission (PenCom) in Abuja, demanding the immediate implementation of an alternative pension arrangement or a return to their agitation for complete withdrawal from the scheme.
The retirees, who began their protest on November 1, said they would remain at the commission’s headquarters until the Federal Government takes concrete steps to implement the agreed Option B arrangement and commence payment of their entitlements.
The protest follows 16 years of agitation over the pension scheme, which the officers have repeatedly described as inadequate and unfair to retired members of the Nigeria Police Force.
The National Coordinator of the Union of Retired Police Officers under the CPS, retired Chief Superintendent of Police, Mannir M. Lawal Zaria, said the retirees initially demanded a complete withdrawal from the contributory scheme before the government proposed two alternatives.
Zaria recalled that the union staged a protest at the Presidential Villa on April 20, 2026, prompting the Federal Government to offer either total withdrawal from the CPS or an alternative arrangement known as Option B.
According to him, government representatives argued that withdrawing from the scheme would require considerable time and substantial funding, while assuring the retirees that Option B had the necessary financial backing, institutional structures and personnel for immediate implementation.
He said the retirees accepted the alternative arrangement in good faith after the government promised that implementation would commence in September 2026.
However, the failure to meet the deadline prompted the officers to resume their protest at PenCom’s headquarters.
“We have received unfulfilled promises for too long. We can no longer accept assurances without action. That is why we decided to come here and remain until we begin receiving alerts in our bank accounts,” Zaria said.
In a statement jointly signed by Zaria and the union’s National Secretary, retired Assistant Superintendent of Police, Elnathan D. Jared, the retirees demanded immediate implementation of Option B, including the agreed debarment allowances.
They also called on President Bola Tinubu, the Minister of Finance, the Director-General of PenCom and the Inspector-General of Police to intervene and ensure a lasting resolution of the dispute.
The union further demanded an official implementation timetable detailing the commencement date, outstanding administrative processes and expected payment dates for their entitlements.
The retirees warned that their acceptance of Option B should not be interpreted as surrender or a willingness to compromise their future, insisting that their decision was driven by patriotism and a desire to give dialogue an opportunity.
They, however, cautioned the government against using their cooperation to prolong the dispute, threatening to return to their original demand for the Nigeria Police Force’s complete withdrawal from PenCom if the alternative arrangement is not implemented within a reasonable timeframe.
The officers also renewed their call for the establishment of an independent Police Pension Board.
“Our patience is not weakness. Our cooperation is not surrender. Our future is not negotiable,” the statement declared.
Meanwhile, Jared disclosed that the National Assembly had passed a bill addressing the pension dispute and transmitted it to President Tinubu in March 2026, but the President did not assent to it.
He said the President subsequently constituted an actuarial evaluation committee to examine the retirees’ grievances and submit its recommendations within 14 days.
However, Jared alleged that several months after the committee was constituted in July, its report had yet to be formally submitted to the Presidency.
He claimed that although the committee had completed its assignment, its chairman, the Minister of Finance, had yet to release the report.
Also speaking, the Assistant National Secretary of the union and Chairman of its Protest Planning Committee, retired Deputy Superintendent of Police, Joseph Akubo, criticised the government’s handling of the dispute.
Akubo said many of the retired officers were now elderly, sick and struggling financially despite spending their productive years protecting the country.
He questioned the delay in submitting the actuarial committee’s report, which was expected to be completed within two weeks, and appealed to the Minister of Finance and other members of the committee to expedite action.
“It is appalling that men who gave their youthful lives to serve Nigeria are now languishing in poverty, penury and sickness because no adequate attention is given to them after retirement,” he said.
The retirees maintained that they would not suspend their protest until the Federal Government provides a definite resolution and begins implementing the agreed pension arrangement.
Their latest action signals a renewed escalation of the dispute, with the officers insisting that the government must honour its commitment to Option B or face intensified agitation for their complete exit from the contributory pension scheme.
