Some aggrieved officers of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have lamented over the alleged injustice, maltreatment and lopsided promotion under the administration of Brig Gen Buba Marwa (retd).
The officers, in an article sent to SaharaReporters, lamented that the NDLEA leadership failed to promote some of its officers who are due, without giving them any reason.
Also speaking, the officers decried the high level of injustice in the promotion exercise recently carried out by the NDLEA.
According to the statement, the NDLEA surprisingly failed to comply with the Harmonised Terms and Condition of Services which were promulgated and regulates a “smooth and well-deserved promotion exercise as and when due among the other rank cadres.”
The aggrieved officers of the NDLEA called on the President, Bola Tinubu, to look into their matter.
The officers who are known as NA2011, which showed that they were employed as Narcotic Agents (level 5) in 2011, expressed their anger over the way the agency was treating them after 12 years of service.
“First, our junior counterparts were promoted to CNA (level 7) and made our equals and the Marwa Administration gave an excuse that there was no vacancy for our promotion even after promoting all other ranks in the agency.
“However, months after, the administration went on to employ more than 2000 Assistant Superintendent 2 (level 8): the same rank that was said not to be vacant.
“Losing seniority and receiving all kinds of insults from our juniors, we as a group wrote to the CCEO of NDLEA pleading with him to save us from the injustice we were facing. Our plea never got treated,” one of them said.
“In a manner that baffled all the officers of the Agency, the set was slashed into two without any criteria on the 28th of November, 2022, by a promotion circular; NDLEA/CON/SUB. 1/ VOL 3/ 146 and half of them were promoted to the rank of Assistant Superintendent 2 with the correct effective date of 1/1/2020 (level 8).
Most of these officers who were promoted were employed six months after the ones that were not promoted,” another officer corroborated.
“The other half that were not promoted were left without any explanation as to why they were maltreated until the Agency on the 31st of May, 2023 promoted them to ASN2 (level 8) but with the effective date of 1st January, 2023 which wipes away three service years that they had put into the job.
“Three service years is equivalent to one rank meaning they have lost seniority by one rank. This set is supposed to have been promoted to Assistant Superintendent 1(level 9) on the 1st of January, 2023. Therefore the administration has denied them that eligibility contrary to the provisions of the agency’s condition of service on career progression.
Who will be happy with this?
“We cannot understand why an administration that has been dishing out promotions to their favoured persons will find it hard to promote them considering the fact that some persons were specially promoted twice consecutively in a year for no specific reason whereas some of the officers of the set who have commendations were not even compensated in their effective dates.
“We are asking why we are being tormented psychologically and punished for no just cause,” the officers’ account added.
“Did the agency sell our right to be treated the way our mates are being treated as enshrined in the Condition of Service of the Agency to Top Nigerian Government who brought in their candidates into the same rank of ASN2 (level 8)?
“Presently, there is total disregard for seniority in the ASN2 rank which only encourages indiscipline in the agency.
“The set is calling on President Bola Ahmed Tinibu to intervene in this matter and advise the agency to correct the effective date of their promotion. This will show that the new president of Nigeria stands for Justice and Tranquility,” their statement added.
When contacted on Sunday, the NDLEA Spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, promised to find out and get to SaharaReporters on Monday. But he has yet to get back with official clarification as of Tuesday morning.