Five former policemen from Akwa Ibom State, dismissed from service in 2007, have called for their reinstatement and payment of outstanding salaries and allowances spanning over 16 years.
The ex-officers, Sunday Okon, Anthony Ebong, Joseph Ede, Victor Ibe, and Uduak Sampson, also appealed to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, Senator Aniekan Bassey, and other federal lawmakers from the state to intervene in their case.
The affected officers, who were enlisted into the Nigeria Police Force in 2003 based on their trade skills, said they were disengaged four years later on the grounds that they were “illiterates,” despite undergoing training and being duly certified.
Speaking in Uyo on Wednesday, their spokesperson, Victor Ibe, said all administrative efforts to secure redress failed, prompting them to approach the court.
According to him, the officers instituted a suit against the Nigeria Police Force and the Police Service Commission at the National Industrial Court, which delivered judgment in their favour in 2019.
He said the court nullified their dismissal and directed that they be reinstated to the ranks they would have attained, alongside full payment of their salaries and entitlements from January 2007.
A certified copy of the judgment showed that the presiding judge, M. A. Namtari, declared the termination unlawful, citing non-compliance with due process and service regulations.
The court also ordered that the judgment be implemented within 90 days.
However, Ibe lamented that seven years after the ruling, the directives had yet to be enforced, despite several letters to successive Inspectors-General of Police and the commission.
He further alleged that while some dismissed officers with connections had been recalled, others without influence remained neglected.
Describing their ordeal, Ibe said many of his colleagues had died during the prolonged legal battle, adding that those still alive were facing severe hardship.
He maintained that the group was qualified for service, stressing that they were recruited as specialists through trade tests.
The spokesperson urged Akpabio and other National Assembly members from the state, including Clement Jimbo and Mark Esset, to prevail on the relevant authorities to comply with the court order, noting that the judgment was not appealed.