A former acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, will retire from the police on May 5, 2022, after attaining 60 years of age.
He was enlisted into the Nigeria Police Force as Cadet Assistant Superintendent of Police on March 3, 1990. He rose to the rank of Commissioner of Police on April 18, 2018.
Reports said he had forwarded his retirement notice to the police authorities in preparation for leaving the service.
But the Police Service Commission said the CP might not get his retirement benefits until he is cleared of allegations of graft and insubordination levelled against him by the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN).
The Commissioner representing the media in the PSC, Mr. Austin Braimoh, told The PUNCHon Sunday that the commission would not process Magu’s retirement benefits until the case against him had been resolved.
Magu was suspended on July 10, 2020, by President Muhammadu Buhari over Malami’s allegations against him. He consequently appeared before a presidential panel headed by retired Justice Ayo Salami set up to probe him.
The probe report, submitted to the President in November 2020, allegedly indicted Magu and recommended his prosecution for corruption and abuse of office.
The report has not been made public and the government has also not said anything about it.
Since his replacement with Abdulrasheed Bawa at the EFCC, Magu has not been posted to any police formation. The PSC declined his elevation to Assistant Inspector-General of Police last July.
But Braimoh said the PSC was not aware of Magu’s retirement. The panel report has also not been presented to the commission.
He said, “The issue of Magu is not before the Police Service Commission that he has been indicted or cleared. He will forward the retirement papers to the commission if he is retiring. We have to inquire whether he has been cleared of the allegations against him.
“If he has not been cleared, we cannot process his retirement papers. Still, he would retire and be waiting until we get clearance from the office of the IGP. If he is not cleared, his retirement benefits cannot be processed, but he would retire.”
The PSC commissioner cited the examples of two senior police officers whose benefits have not been paid for over two years since they retired from the service.
He added, “I don’t want to mention the names of two senior officers who retired over two years ago but their documents were not processed over one infringement or the other that has not been cleared. If the PSC does not process the retirement documents of any officer, he cannot enjoy his retirement benefits and he cannot be said to have retired.
“I’m not aware if the force secretary has sent his retirement papers to the commission. Unless his documents are sent to us, we cannot even engineer an inquiry to the IG. We can query the IG’s office to give us his documents, but if there is something before us.” (Punch)
