Tension is brewing at the Police Service Commission as workers accuse management of failing to pay them several outstanding allowances dating back years, including payments for the 2022 Ekiti and Osun elections and the 2023 general elections.
The workers also accused management of withholding their Duty Tour Allowances, paid to staff deployed for official trips and assignments.
Other outstanding payments include allowances for the Police Academy, the 2016 police recruitment exercise and the Departmental Selection Board, as well as balances owed for the 2025 Police Constable medical screening.
The workers are also demanding the outstanding balance of the first 28 days’ payment owed to some staff.
It was gathered that the discontent could disrupt activities at the commission if the grievances are not addressed.
Some of the workers, who spoke to our correspondent on Sunday on condition of anonymity, expressed frustration over the unpaid allowances.
“We are preparing for another general election. Could you believe that in the last general elections in 2023, we have not been paid for it?
“The Ekiti and Osun elections in 2022, we have not received a dime for it. Some borrowed money to get the work done. Nothing has been done.
“We have several other allowances that we have not been paid. This place is out of it,” one of the workers said.
Another official of the commission lamented the poor state of some of its offices, particularly those in the Wing B section of the building.
The official said, “The present state of some of the commission’s offices, especially in the Wing B section of the building, is obviously incapable of providing the necessary protection for the staff inhabiting such offices in the face of the prevailing heat waves (El Niño) in the country.
“The management has not prioritised the health and well-being of the staff by making all the offices conducive, with air-conditioning systems installed where they are non-existent, for the staff’s optimal performance.”
Two letters from the workers’ unions to the management, obtained by our correspondent, detailed their grievances and demands.
In the second letter, dated November 10, the unions gave management a seven-day ultimatum to settle the outstanding payments or face an indefinite strike.
“This letter serves as a notice of industrial action with a seven-day ultimatum, after which we will proceed with an indefinite industrial action,” the letter stated.
The first letter, a communique dated November 5, followed a meeting of the Joint Union Congress (PSC Unit) held on November 2 at the commission’s headquarters in Jabi, Abuja.
It was signed by the leaders of the PSC units of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria and the Nigeria Civil Service Union.
In the communique, the unions said the commission’s former management had sought an intervention fund from the Federal Government, which they alleged was accessed by the current management.
“Congress is miffed by the management’s non-payment of these liabilities despite several letters and meetings,” the communique said, demanding the “immediate payment of ALL staff liabilities and claims.”
In the November 10 letter, the unions said the debts dated back several years and had been brought to the attention of successive managements.
They accused the current leadership of failing to demonstrate commitment to settling the liabilities, alleging that the chairman had, at different times, promised payment before questioning why the commission should settle debts incurred by previous administrations.
“Leadership is a continuum, and so, no management can run away from liabilities owed to staff, just as they enjoy the assets inherited,” the letter stated.
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The unions also alleged that some staff had borrowed money, including from loan sharks, to finance official assignments, while some of their colleagues had died indebted.
Beyond the unpaid allowances, the November 5 communique raised other welfare concerns.
The unions alleged that some staff were repeatedly selected for training while others were rarely given such opportunities. They also said the revised Duty Tour Allowance rates for training within the Federal Capital Territory had not been implemented.
They further accused management of failing to comply with a circular issued by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation requiring welfare packages for staff at least twice a year, alleging that payments from the previous year remained outstanding.
The unions also complained about inadequate staff buses, saying the old vehicles were repeatedly fitted with refurbished engines but continued to break down, leaving workers stranded.
They called for an upward review of the allowances paid to National Youth Service Corps members attached to the commission, describing the current rates as unrealistic.
The November 10 letter contained further allegations against the management.
The unions accused management of sidelining the Public Service Rules in favour of corporate governance principles and alleged that directors and heads of departments were being excluded from decision-making, although they did not provide specific instances.
They also alleged that financial information was being concealed and that budget virements, which they described as prohibited, had become common practice.
The unions questioned the purchase of 2026-model vehicles by the commission while workers remained unpaid and staff buses were inadequate.
They further expressed suspicion that an intervention fund might have been made available, despite being told to await fresh funding from the Presidential Initiative for Continuous Accounting, a situation they described as possible “triple jeopardy.”
“Honestly, we feel so tired of the rigmarole and hoping that our liabilities are settled; hence it has to be now,” the letter stated.
In the November 5 communique, the unions said they remained committed to “constructive engagement” and industrial harmony but warned that “the welfare of our members cannot be sacrificed indefinitely.”
Reacting, the PSC spokesman, Torty Kalu, said the intervention fund meant to clear the outstanding debts had not been released to the commission.
He also denied allegations that money approved for settling the liabilities had been diverted to the purchase of vehicles.
Kalu said the board had appealed to the workers to be patient, adding that the commission was making efforts to secure the release of the funds.
“It’s not that the government has approved money for that and then they are using it to buy vehicles. That is false. But the fact is that they have not been paid the 2022 Ekiti and Osun and 2023 General Election duty allowance.
“You apply for a budget to run the Commission for standing disciplinary matters and promotion matters. They approve and release funds for you to use. If you use it to pay the staff who are owed, you will be handicapped. You won’t be able to carry out the current assignment for which the budget was appropriated. That is exactly what is happening.
“The board members have said, ‘Hold on.’ The intervention money to clear those outstanding debts has not been paid. It has not been given to the Commission. They have assured them.
“Even the Secretary to the Commission, I know how many times he has visited the Accountant-General’s budget office to see how money will be released to clear these outstanding debts. It’s not that the Commission said they are not going to pay those outstanding. They are pursuing this.
“Let it surprise you to know that, as a commission, the staff have not benefited from any other board more than the way they have benefited from this board.”
