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PSC To Address Lopsided Promotion In Police
The Police Service Commission has promised to come up with an agenda to address alleged lopsidedness in the promotion of some personnel of the Force.
Junior officers of the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) have decried high level of injustice in the promotion exercise carried out by the force headquarters recently.
The affected officers alleged that rather than following due processes, the promotion was lopsided and was based on “cash and carry”
In a statement signed by leader of the affected police officer, Abdulmajeed Lukeman, the officer alleged they were denied the right to be promoted while those promoted were not qualified.
They urged the new Chairman of the Police Service Commission and the board members to urgently look into the issue.
Part of their statement reads: “We are writing on behalf of Inspectors, Rank and File of the Nigeria Police Force, to draw the attention of Police Council and the Police Service Commission on our ordeal and injustice that is ongoing within the Nigeria Police system.
“In the year 2015, the Nigeria Police leaders at that time in their wisdom saw a need to upgrade inspectors, Rank and File with Higher Educational Qualifications. Based on that, they called for Aptitude Test (Examination) and screening of officers with University Degrees and HND certificates to be upgraded to the Rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), reference to Police Wireless Massage (Signal) CB:7510/DTD/FHQ/ABJ/VOL.7/11, DTO151800/06/2015 Promotion General Dated 06/2015.
“The examination and the screening were done by the Police authority in conjunction with Police Service Commission in various State and Zonal Commands respectively. After the examination and screening, fifty (50) successful candidates were shortlisted from each state of the federation including FCT Abuja according to their States of Origins and Local Government Areas, including supplementary which make up to 2,226 candidates.
“Eventually, in December 2015, the Police authority called for the final screening at the FHQ Abuja by signal No. CB: 7510/DTD FHQ/ABJ/VOL.7/66 Dated 5th December 2015. This final screening was not even supposed to come up again because we have already been screened by representatives of Police Services Commission and FHQ in both Zonal and State Commands. However, to our utmost surprise, at the peak of the screening exercise at FHQ we were told by the Police authority that, we should go back to our various Commands/Formation for further directives.
“Furthermore, January 22, 2016 on Friday, the Leadership Newspaper published that, the Senate Committee on Police Affairs said it is in custody of names of successful candidates to be upgraded to the Rank of Assistance Superintendent of Police (ASP) base on Educational Qualification from the former Inspector General of Police Mr. Solomon Arase, and the committee promised, it will make sure that there will be no lopsidedness in the promotion.
“While we were still waiting hoping to be called, the Police authority differs the laid down procedure of appointment into the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) as seen in section 39 part IV of Police act and regulation.
“They decided to call for recruitment of civilian graduates as cadet ASP, without any recourse to us! The serving members who were earlier screened, waiting to be promoted. The above provision of the police act and regulation Provides that vacancies in Assistant Superintendent of Police ASP cadre can only be filled up with candidates from outside the Police, by the reason of unavailability of suitable candidates from within the force.
“We kindly request the new Chairman of the Police Service Commission and its board members as a matter of urgency to get the names of all those who have benefited for the special promotion, and find out what have they done to deserve the special promotion.”
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.