53 graduate cops sue Malawi Police IG, Attorney General
At least 53 graduate Malawi Police Service (MPS) officers are suing their boss— Inspector General (IG) Rodney Jose —and the Attorney General (AG) for what they describe disparities in the manner the issues regarding the adjustment of their salaries was done.
The aggrieved police officers, in the ranks of inspectors and below,,most of whom are university graduates, say they have been overly “discriminated” because while the rest of their friends were promoted and had their salaries increased they were not.
Through documents which Nyasa Times has seen, the officers have hired private practice lawyer Gift Nankhuni and have issued fresh summons which have been issued from the High Court in Lilongwe dragging to court MPS and the AG following the a three month ultimatum.
“Fifty-three police graduates still feel that they were unlawfully and unfairly discriminated as out of the police officers population of fourteen thousand in Malawi, only their grades were not changed during Police Structural Reforms, which came to effect on 1st July, 2017.
“They feel changing of grades was like a national cake which was by all means supposed to be shared equally regardless of ranks and qualifications. They tried all they can to amicably sort out this industrial issue outside court but what they got from Police Management was discrimination and lack of assistance, despite other government organs including the Police Service Commission faulting it for not changing the grades across the board,” reads one of the documents.
Among the claims, which the officers want that they should be given within fourteen days, they want a uniform implementation of the “aforementioned structural reform so that the Claimant’s salaries and dejure positions should be adjusted two grades upwards accordingly.”
According to them, their salaries and ranks need to be duly adjusted.
They also want “salary arrears, being the difference between the increased salaries and the current salaries, from 1st July, 2017 at the rate of MK53, 885.00 per month.”
Police officers in the country rarely speak out against suspected cases of oppression by their superiors under the guise of discipline.
Kodi inu 53 police graduates are you lomwe`s or joined MPS because of Goodall & Co from north? When we say this govt practices nepotism, that’s one of the reasons, it does not do its management on merit but favourtism, so vote wisely next year by voting out this matchona govt so that you will be promoted to your friends grade and have your arrears, otherwise mukhalira kulira choncho basi. PERIOD
mm don’t politicize the issue. these officers should be considered to motivate others the benefits of higher education and these have additional skills that can help to transform the police service for the better of the nation