IG proposes 200% gratuity and pension for retired police officers

The Inspector-General of Police (IG), Olatunji Disu, has proposed a 200 per cent gratuity and pension for retired police officers as part of ongoing reforms to address longstanding pension challenges in the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

Disu disclosed this on Sunday in Abuja, saying the proposal was before a Presidential Committee established to examine police concerns and recommend sustainable solutions.

He said the proposal was intended to secure improved retirement benefits for police personnel and address longstanding pension challenges.

The committee comprises representatives of the Ministry of Finance, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission, the Budget Office of the Federation and the National Pension Commission (PenCom).

Proposed reforms target pension liabilities

Disu said the proposed framework would tie eligible officers’ pension benefits to their last salaries while providing an enhanced gratuity.

• “Under the proposed arrangement, eligible officers can retire on pension benefits linked to their last salaries, alongside the enhanced gratuity,” Disu said.

He said the package was also expected to address recurring protests by serving officers seeking to exit the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), a contentious issue within the force.

Disu said the proposed initiative would address outstanding pension liabilities, improve retirement benefits and establish a more efficient pension administration system.

• “The initiative is aimed at resolving the outstanding pension liabilities, provide more adequate retirement benefits and create a more efficient pension administration system,” he said.
• “It also seeks to cover officers who retired before the new framework takes effect, with provisions to review their benefits in line with the revised terms, rather than limiting reform to future retirees,” he said.

He added that the committee would recommend measures to address outstanding liabilities, funding arrangements and benefit administration, while improving coordination among the institutions responsible for pension policy, funding and administration.

Disu stressed that the proposal remained subject to the committee’s deliberations, relevant government approvals, funding arrangements and implementation guidelines. He cautioned that the proposed 200 per cent gratuity and pension should not be regarded as an approved benefit or an existing entitlement.

Government clears pension payment backlog

Disu said President Bola Tinubu’s intervention in the police pension crisis had raised expectations among retired officers who had long complained about inadequate benefits, delayed payments and administrative bottlenecks.

He noted that timely access to pension benefits was essential for retirees to meet household expenses and medical bills amid rising living costs.

According to the IG, the Federal Government had cleared the backlog of pension payments that previously left some retirees waiting for up to two years and introduced pension increments.

He said some beneficiaries were now receiving almost double their previous pension payments.

Police pension reform efforts

The proposed pension reforms come amid longstanding demands by retired police officers to exit the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and secure improved retirement benefits.

In April 2026, Nairametrics reported that retired police officers protested in Abuja, urging President Bola Tinubu to approve their exit from the CPS and establish a Nigerian Police Pension Board.

In November 2024, the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp) warned that removing police officers from the CPS could destabilise Nigeria’s financial system. The association estimated that moving to a Defined Benefits Scheme could require N3.5 trillion annually to fund pensions for about 400,000 personnel.

In August 2025, President Tinubu directed the immediate rollout of free healthcare for low-income retirees and urged the National Pension Commission (PenCom) to resolve the longstanding police pension issue as part of broader efforts to improve pensioners’ welfare.