The bill, sponsored by House Leader Hon. Julius Ihonvbere, who represents Owan Federal Constituency, seeks to exempt the Nigeria Police Force from the Contributory Pension Scheme as provided under the Pension Reform Act, 2014.
Titled “A Bill for an Act to Establish the Nigerian Police Force Pension Board Charged with the Responsibility of Administering the Pension Scheme for the Personnel of the Force and to Exempt the Force from the Application of the Contributory Pension Scheme under the Pension Reform Act, 2014 and for Related Matters (HB. 979)”, the proposal scaled through its third reading on the floor of the House.
If signed into law, the bill will establish a Police Pension Board to oversee the management of retirement benefits, gratuities, and other pension-related matters for both serving and retired police officers.
The initiative aims to address long-standing grievances among police personnel regarding delays, inequities, and administrative challenges in the current contributory pension system managed by the National Pension Commission (PenCom).
The bill’s passage follows a series of protests by retired police officers who have for years decried poor welfare and unpaid entitlements. Many retirees had taken to the streets of Abuja to demand removal from the contributory scheme, lamenting that some of them were now forced to take menial jobs to survive.
During one of the protests tagged #PoliceProtest, several ex-officers and activists carried placards with inscriptions such as “PenCom is a killer disease worse than cancer” and “We reject the IGP’s new pension scheme.”
Human rights activist Omoyele Sowore, who joined the demonstrations, criticised the poor treatment of police retirees, describing the situation as “inhumane and unacceptable.”
The proposed legislation, once assented to, will allow police officers to operate a dedicated pension structure similar to that of the military, ensuring timely payments, fair entitlements, and improved post-service welfare.
