LAGOS JULY 5TH (URHOBOTODAY)-Two Hundred and Forty Nigerian policemen who participated in peacekeeping operations in Guinea Bissau between July 2013 and December 2015 under the banner of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) mandate have raised the alarm over alleged diversion of about $982, 800 allowance meant for the whole contingent.
A report made available to Urhobotoday by the aggrieved policemen alleged that an allowance of $195 per month budgeted as peace keeping operation allowance to each of the police officers was not paid to them after the completion of their peace keeping operation in Guinea Bissau.
They alleged that while their counterparts in Nigerian army that participated in the peacekeeping mission were paid their allowances, they (the police officers) have not been paid their allowances that summed up to about $4,095 each (about $982, 800) for the whole contingent.
It would be recalled that in 2013, authorities of the Nigeria Police Force, (NPF), deployed no fewer than 400 police officers for peace keeping operations on the United Nations Mission to some African countries.
The NPF, then under the command of Mohammed Abubakar, then Inspector-General, had deployed officers to Darfur, Sudan, Cote D’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea Bissau, Haiti, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia and South Sudan.
The police officers in a petition alleged that some senior police officers and officials in the Ministry of Police Affairs may have divert the money, which they further alleged the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan government, had approved and released funds meant for payment.
Our source disclosed that the first batch of the Nigerian Police contingent were deployed to then war torn Guinea Bissau from July 2013 -July 2014, while the second batch were deployed from July 2014-December 2015, at Safim Camp in Guinea Bissau.
Some of the policemen, who spoke to Urhobotoday on condition of anonymity, lamented that the non-payment of their allowances has brought hardship on their families and left them demoralised.
They urged the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government and the National Assembly to urgently look into the situation.
They also said that their luggage, including credentials, uniforms and other personal belongings had yet to be brought back to Nigeria since they were airlifted back to the country in December last year.
Authorities of the Nigerian Army, security source disclosed, dispatched Army plane to convey the soldiers from Guinea Bissau back home as soon as the assignment was completed.
Urhobotoday learnt that two of the police officers had died without collecting the allowance they worked for.
“One Corporal Ganiyu Kolawole died from complication arising from high blood pressure, while one Sergeant Tehiba Egba, suffered partial stroke,” Our source revealed.
However, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Jimita Lawal, Director for Peace Keeping for the Nigeria Police Force, told our reporter that ECOWAS has not paid the allowances of the police officers.
According to him, the police officers from Nigeria were among the many other police officers drafted from countries in Africa for the peace mission.