Hundreds of retired police officers on Monday staged a protest at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, blocking one of the main access gates and demanding that President Bola Tinubu sign the Police Pension Exit Bill into law.
The protesters, comprising elderly retirees and their family members, gathered under the umbrella of the Police Retired Officers Forum of Nigeria (PROF), accusing the federal government of neglect and insensitivity to their welfare.
The bill, which seeks to remove the police from the contributory pension scheme, was passed by the National Assembly on December 4, 2025, and transmitted to the Presidency on March 16, 2026.
However, it is yet to receive presidential assent.
Chanting solidarity songs and displaying placards with inscriptions such as: “Police dey work, PenCom dey chop” and “Tinubu, sign our bill now,” the retirees insisted they would not vacate the area until the president addresses them.
Security operatives, including personnel of the police and the Department of State Services (DSS), were deployed to the scene to prevent a breakdown of law and order.
The officers formed a barricade at the entrance, restricting the protesters from gaining access into the Aso Villa.
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Despite repeated appeals by security officials, the demonstrators refused to disperse, maintaining that only direct engagement with the president would resolve their grievances.
One of the protesters lamented the harsh realities faced by retirees under the contributory pension scheme, describing the scheme as inadequate and exploitative.
“We served this country for over three decades, only to be paid peanuts after retirement. Some of us receive as low as N30,000 monthly. That cannot sustain a family in today’s economy,” he said.
Another retiree noted that many former officers have died in poverty, urging the president to act swiftly to alleviate their suffering.
The contributory pension scheme, administered by the National Pension Commission, has remained a contentious issue among police retirees, who argue that it fails to reflect the peculiar risks associated with policing.
