Hon. Justice Olufunke Anuwe of the Abuja Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court has ordered the Police Service Commission, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), and the Force Secretary to amend the records of CSP Sogbade Musiliu and all members of Course 31/1990 (force entrants) of the Police Academy to reflect April 2, 1990, as their official date of first appointment.
The court declared the retirement of CSP Sogbade Musiliu and other members of Course 31/1990 (force entrants) of the Police Academy as unlawful, stating it contradicted their appointment date as Cadet Inspectors in 1990.
Justice Anuwe set aside their premature retirements from the Nigeria Police Force and ordered the Police Service Commission, the IGP, and the Force Secretary to compute and pay CSP Sogbade Musiliu and the affected officers all salaries, allowances, and other entitlements from the dates of their unlawful retirement up to April 2, 2025 — the date they are deemed to have lawfully retired.
The claimants — CSP Sogbade Musiliu and other members of Course 31/1990 — filed the complaint on May 9, 2023, on behalf of themselves and all members of the course.
CSP Sogbade testified that in 1989, the Nigeria Police Force advertised vacancies for Cadet Inspectors. Some applicants were already serving police officers with university degrees or other qualifying certificates. These officers were instructed to resign and reapply for the programme like civilian applicants. He explained that any successful candidate appointed as Cadet Inspector was deemed to have resigned from prior service and could not claim any privilege over civilian counterparts — a condition they all complied with.
In response, the 2nd and 3rd defendants — the Inspector-General of Police and the Force Secretary — argued that the date of first appointment into the police force remained the officers’ original recruitment date as rank-and-file members, not 1990.
A witness for the IGP and Force Secretary claimed that the officers never resigned from their initial appointments before joining the Cadet Inspector programme, as instructed in the 1989 signal. They maintained that CSP Sogbade Musiliu and others continued receiving salaries until the end of the training, which, according to them, meant their original enlistment dates still stood.
However, counsel to the affected officers, Teslim Agboola Esq., alongside Mohammed Lawal Esq., argued that their clients’ retirement dates should be calculated from April 2, 1990. They stated that while some had already been forced into retirement, others who had not yet completed 35 years of service were also being compelled to leave. They urged the court to grant all requested reliefs.
Delivering judgment, Justice Anuwe ruled that based on the letters issued to CSP Sogbade Musiliu and others, their appointments were to take effect from the date they reported for training, which was not later than April 2, 1990.
The court held that the contents of the appointment letters clearly indicated that the 1990 Cadet Inspector appointments were fresh and separate from any prior service, meaning the officers were deemed to have resigned from earlier positions.
Justice Anuwe concluded that the retirement dates of CSP Sogbade Musiliu and other members of Course 31/1990 must be calculated from their fresh appointments in 1990. Consequently, the IGP and Force Secretary could not lawfully retire the officers based on their earlier enlistment dates as rank-and-file personnel.
