Corruption scandal rocks Police Commission

Integrity appears to have lost relevance at the Police Service Commission (PSC), sequel to widespread allegations of corruption over the recent promotions of senior police officers.

Investigations by Crime Tracker reveal that several aggrieved officers are threatening to spill the beans if the alleged lopsided promotion is not rectified by the chairman of PSC, Retired Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Musiliu Smith.

Some of them who claimed to be victims of the lopsided promotion, spoke under strict anonymity to Crime Tracker that, “if the chairman who claimed to be Mr. Integrity failed to rectify the anomalies, some of us will openly protest.”

Discrete investigations further revealed that an officer in Force Headquarters,(FHQ) Abuja who was promoted in 2017 to Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) has been further lifted to become Superintendent of Police (SP) in the last promotion of December 2020.

His senior colleague, who was promoted in 2016 as a DSP was ignored and not promoted to SP in the recent exercise. Yet, it was testified that the man has no stain in his records.

Some of the aggrieved officers who claimed that they submitted their Annual Performance Evaluation Report (APER) for 2017, 2018 and 2019 to the Commission were also not promoted.

Another suspicious case is that of one star Assistant Superintendent of Police (unconfirmed ASP) serving in Lagos State police command, who was said to have not attended promotional course but was promoted a DSP without confirming his one star ASP rank. This alleged lopsided promotion implies that the officer did not wear two star ASP rank before wearing three star DSP rank.

The PSC chairman in 2018 warned that only officers who have attended pro-motional courses or examinations and have passed such examinations would be promoted.

Several officers thumped up for him calling him Mr. Integrity, for ensuring that the era of money for ranks was over.

Controversy trailing the lopsided promotion came to light when on the 19th of December, 2020, the Police Service Commission announced the promotion of 29 Assistant Commissioners of Police(ACP) to the next rank of DCPs out of 46 ACPs, due for promotion, who were last promoted (to ACP) in September, 2016.

Meanwhile, Ohaneze Ndigbo has raised an alarm that the South East region was marginalized in the December 2020 promotion.

Spokesman of the PSC Ikechukwu Ani promptly responded in a press statement that promotion of officers other than that of Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIGs) is not done on geo-political consideration. (Saturday Independent)