The Police Service Commission (PSC) has reacted to recent media reports concerning the judgement of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) in the case of *ACP Chinedu Ambrose Emengaha & 7 Ors vs Police Service Commission & Ors* (Suit No. NICN/ABJ/28/2025).
The Commission’s response follows a report published by Sahara Reporters on October 2, 2025, with the headline: “Court Orders IGP Egbetokun, PSC to Reinstate Owohunwa, Simon Lough, 194 Other Officers Sacked Over Age Falsification Scandal.”
According to the Sahara Reporters publication, the NICN had ordered the immediate reinstatement of 196 police officers from Cadet ASP Force Courses 18, 19, and 20, who were dismissed over alleged age falsification. The report further listed some senior officers, AIG Idowu Owohunwa, CP Benneth Igweh, and DCP Simon Lough, SAN, as among those affected.
In a statement signed by the Commission’s Head of Press and Public Relations, Mr. Ikechukwu Ani, the PSC clarified that while it is fully aware of the court’s decision delivered on September 30, 2025, by Hon. Justice R.B. Haastrup, the judgement did not specifically order the reinstatement of any officer, contrary to the media report.
The Commission outlined the key declarations made by the court, which include:
1. That the claimants’ dates of first appointment, as contained in their appointment letters, are not subject to review by the defendants.
2. That members of Cadet ASP Force Entrant Courses 18, 19, and 20 who have neither served 35 years nor attained 60 years of age are excluded from the PSC’s January 31, 2025 directive on retirement.
3. That the appointment of the claimants as Cadet Officers constitutes a fresh appointment and is not a merger of previous service.
4. That the PSC and other defendants cannot set aside valid and subsisting judgements of the court previously delivered on similar matters.
5. That the PSC’s directive on January 31, 2025, as it concerns Courses 18, 19, and 20, is set aside.
6. That the defendants are perpetually restrained from reviewing appointment dates already settled by earlier judgements.
7. That the defendants are perpetually restrained from retiring any member of the affected courses who has not reached 60 years of age.
The Commission emphasised that “nothing in the court’s decision specifically orders the reinstatement of the officers, nor does it mention any individual names.”
Mr. Ani further disclosed that the PSC is currently studying the judgement with a view to taking appropriate legal steps, including a possible appeal.
The statement also clarified that the senior officers named in the media report—AIG Idowu Owohunwa, AIG Benneth Igweh, and DCP Simon Lough, have a separate case pending before the National Industrial Court (*Suit No. NICN/ABJ/88/2025*), which is still awaiting determination.
Reaffirming its commitment to due process, the PSC stated:
> “The Commission is a responsible organisation guided by the principle of obedience to the rule of law, and will not do anything to undermine the sanctity of the judiciary.”
