RETIRED SOLDIERS LAY SIEGE TO FINANCE MINISTRY HEADQUARTERS

‎Scores of retired soldiers who voluntarily exited the Nigerian Army, on
Monday shut down the main entrance to the headquarters of the Ministry of
Finance.
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‎The protest, which commenced at about 10:15am, witnessed presence of
heavy security personnel drawn from the military, police and the
Department of State Services (DSS), apparently to prevent break down of
law and order.
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‎According to reports, the retired security personnel from both the police and
army have staged protests in the nation’s capital more three times within
seven months.
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‎A few weeks ago, retired police officers stormed the Force Headquarters,
Abuja, over what they described as killing Contributory Pension Scheme.
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‎Speaking to newsmen on the sideline of the protest on Monday, one of the
leaders of the protesters, Staff Sergeant Simon Ipwu, cited the yet to be
paid Security Debarment Allowance and Insurance as one of the reasons
for the protest.
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‎Others include cutting of their gratuity and withholding of their four months’
salaries when they tendered their resignation.
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‎He vowed that they would continue to block the ministry’s headquarters
until their demands were met.