You see, dear reader, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has just affixed his name to a measure that would rival the benefits of nobility. The esteemed Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo made the declaration at what they call a "Ministerial Retreat" in Abuja, sounding proud as a peacock.
What's this new arrangement, you ask? Well, it's about ensuring that certain government officials will keep drawing their full salary until the day they depart this mortal coil. But heed this observation - this magnificent benefit ain't for ordinary civil servants.
Certainly not! This special treatment is exclusively for those fortunate souls who retire at the lofty ranks of the highest echelons of service in agencies under the Ministry of Interior.
The declared motivation – and I convey this solemnly – is to guarantee these eminent persons maintain their dignity. Imagine that! As if a high-ranking official with decades of government service would be found wanting.This interesting measure comes alongside other improvements including clearing a backlog of over 50,000 pending promotions and creating what they're calling a "world-class Fire Academy" to match the one in Arizona. Development proceeds, or so they claim.
In my study of bureaucracies devise ways to reward their own, but this lifetime salary arrangement stands apart. Any thinking person would ask: Why not extend such magnanimity to each civil servant? Even more appropriately, to the ordinary folks whose money pays these salaries?
The difference with other public servants remains clear as crystal. Many a police retiree still languish patiently for post-service compensation that barely cover basic needs.
As I finish this narrative, I must return to our subject: the lifetime compensation of Nigeria's senior officers. This August 2025 measure reveals encyclopedias about the priorities of those who govern. And that, my friend, is a reality worth contemplating long after you've finished reading these words.
