Inspector General  Of Police Revised Housing Scheme, Slashes Equity Payments Or Deposits By Police Officers Before Acquiring Houses

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, psc(+), NPM, fdc has revised the Housing SCHEME of the Nigeria Police Force. A significant amendment to the Housing Policy is the slashing of Equity payments or deposits by Police Officers before acquiring houses financed by the Nigeria Police Cooperative and Multipurpose Society. Hitherto, officers of the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police to the rank of Inspector General of Police were required to pay 20 percent of the property value while officers below the rank of ASP were required to pay 10 percent. The revised equity now requires officers from the rank of ASP to IGP to pay 10 percent as equity while junior Officers pay 5 percent. Other revisions include a downward review of the life of the payment schedule from five (5) to seven (7) years on all properties. A Police Wireless Signal to that effect was issued and circulated in 2021 announcing the change.

The Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Police Cooperative, AIG Adamu Usman told The New Dawn that the IGP’s Policy on Housing has reinvigorated the scheme as more officers are flocking to the Cooperative to enjoy the opportunities. “The IGP believes that housing is more important to the lives of Police Officers than any other thing,” the AIG said. “He wants it to be affordable and acquirable through a seamless process.” Several housing estates relevant to the achievement of this policy are being completed on the orders of the Inspector-General of Police, while new ones are being developed. Houses range from one-bedroom, to duplex; there are detached and semi-detached and are available in all the geo-political zones of the country.

The welfare of Police Officers is a cardinal policy of the Inspector-General of Police. IGP Usman Alkali Baba reassured Officers during a recent familiarization tour to Akwa Ibom and Cross River States, that his administration will put the welfare of Police Officers first while working hard to ensure that working tools and equipment are available to provide professional and quality policing services to Nigerians while protecting officers and their families.

The IGP who had an extensive interaction with police officers in Cross River State commended them for their dedication and professionalism and assured them of improved welfare and working conditions. He reiterated the importance of training and retraining as a key strategy of his administration to ensure policing in contemporary Nigeria is propped up to manage effectively the ever dilating and dynamic nature of crimes and criminality in the country.

Vehicles, equipment and accommodation were provided in January 2022 by the Police Trust Fund, Akwa Ibom and Cross Rivers states’ governments.

Source: The Newdawn