Jitoboh sues Police Service Commission over wrongful retirement as DIG, seeks N500m as general damages

A compulsorily retired Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police, Mr Moses Ambakina Jitoboh, has prayed the National Industrial Court, NIC, sitting in Abuja, to declare his purported compulsory retirement by Police Service Commission, PSC, before his mandatory 60 years retirement age or 35 years in service as wrongful, unconstitutional and unlawful.
Jitoboh, in his statement of claims filed before the court, further described his purported compulsory retirement as
a flagrant violation of Rule 020810 of the Public Service Rules and Section 18 (8) of the Nigeria Police Act,
2020,respectively.
The PSC, it will be recalled, had purportedly retired DIG Jitoboh and three others on the ground of upholding the Police tradition of retiring, when a junior Police officer is promoted over his senior to avoid “status reversal”.
The retired DIG is also praying for an order of the court directing the PSC to pay the sum of N500 Million only as general damages for the unwarranted embarrassment caused
by the purported termination of his employment as he has been portrayed to be a disloyal officer.
He is also asking for another sum of N50 Million “as the cost of prosecuting this action”.
Jitoboh, in his statement of claims, maintained that he was and remains an officer of the Nigeria Police Force until the 10th day of June, 2029 when he would have attained 35 years in service and duly retire and that he is therefore entitled to his salaries, emoluments and all other paraphernalia of office due to him.
The compulsorily retired DIG is seeking the declaration of the National Industrial Court that pursuant to Section 4 (3) of the Police Service Commission Act, 2001 the defendant (PSC) has no valid Board to take any decision whatsoever purporting to retire or promote any Police Officer as the PSC Board tenure elapsed in July of 2023.
The PSC Board, he added, enjoys a joint tenure and there is no legal basis for Mr. Arase to remain in office after the tenure of the Board elapsed as he was appointed to complete the tenure of Mr. Musiliu Smith who resigned as PSC Chairman in 2022.
Other declarations sought by Jitoboh include;
*An order of this Honorable Court (NIC) setting aside the purported
compulsory retirement of the Claimant as Deputy Inspector-General of Police on the 25th day of August, 2023 by the
Defendant.
*An order setting aside all the unlawful and embarrassing decisions taken by the defendant (PSC), including the retirement of the claimant (Jitoboh)
and the promotion of another to replace the claimant, same having been done unlawfully and illegally.
While saying that the issue has emphatically shown, by verifiable evidence, that there is no such Police tradition like requiring the retirement of officers because a junior officer was promoted over such seniors, the claimant cited some examples including that of Mr. Ogbonnaya Onovo, who served under two of his juniors without being compulsorily retired until he ultimated became the IG of Police. He also cited the present Chairman of PSC, Mr Solomon Arase, who served under Suleiman Abba, who was his (Arase’s) junior without being compulsorily retired until he himself eventually rose to the position of IG of Police.
“Where did Arase create this “Police Tradition” from?, the claimant queried as history shows otherwise.
The claimant further recalled that in 2016, the PSC purportedly retired AIG Mbu Joseph Mbu on the same ground as this, but that decision was correctly set-aside by the National Industrial Court of Nigeria for being unlawful, embarrassing and unconstitutional.