Adeola Damilare
The Police Service Commission, (PSC), presided by its Chairman, former IGP Musiliu Smith, after it’s 13 plenary meeting in Abuja which held on Monday 20 December and Tuesday 21 December, has directed a Commissioner of Police, CP Abdulkarim Dauda to tender his letter of retirement with immediate effect for breach of due process/illegal extension of tenure.
CP Abdulkarim Dauda who was a one Chief Security Officer (CSO) to former President Goodluck Jonathan and also worked briefly with President Muhammadu Buhari and was due for retirement from the NPF after attaining the mandatory 35 years in service has also been directed to refund salaries he collected from the Police from January 2020 to date.
Commissioner in charge Media and Publicity in the Board of the PSC, Mr. Austin Briamoh who made this known after the plenary said CP Dauda claimed that he was given extension of service during the tenure of former IGP Mohammed Adamu to year 2021.
But Mr. Briamoh disclosed that during plenary, all the records were searched and there was nowhere or any document showing that President Muhammadu Buhari approved an extension for him while there was also no record showing when or where IGP Adamu authorized his extension of service.
Futhermore, Braimoh disclosed that the cat was let off the bag when the former CSO sent a correspondence to the PSC demanding promotion to the next rank of Assistant Inspector General of Police arguing that he was qualified for such since by virtue of the extension, he was still in the force.
“So the board of the PSC haven discovered several infraction on the issue of extension for CP Abdulkarim Dauda without due process, rejected the extension and backdated his retirement to 1st of January 2020 when he was actually due for retirement”, Braimoh said.
” We have no record that his tenure was extended by Mr. President. So quietly, we have asked for him to go. He is to retire and return the salaries he collected from January 2020 till date. We even tempered justice with mercy because when he was to retire, he was given an extension.
“It was a violation of the Police act and statutes. On top of that, he is appealing that he should be promoted upwards when he is on illegal extension”
Asked why it took the commission this long to act on the illegal extension while the officer was collecting salaries and superintending over others, Braimoh said, ” The PSC is a constitutional body. We follow due process and ensure that the law is applied justice-ably and obeyed. As you can see, we even tempered Justice with Mercy.
He emphasized that the retirement of CP Dauda is with immediate effect.
Continuing, Braimoh who was supported by Ikechukwu Ani, head of Press and Public Relations at the briefing said a number of promotions were approved at the end of the 13 plenary on promotions and appeals.
On the issue of discipline and that fate of DCP Abba Kyari whose investigation report had since been submitted to the commission by the IGP after the DIG Joseph Egbunike panel completed its investigation several weeks ago, Braimoh said, “The Police Service Commission is not going to set up a panel to try DCP Abba Kyari or look into his case separately.
“The plenary has not deliberated on the aspect of discipline for officers. It will be done jointly with other disciplinary cases of other officers having issues. Kyari’s case and others will be decided after due consideration of everything. We do not treat any disciplinary cases in isolation
On when the planery will reconvene, he said, “The planery for disciplinary issues is adjourned till January 2022. What we considered today are promotion and appeals.
