27th October, 2010
More than 50 pensioners in Sokoto State died while awaiting their federal share of pensions from 2000 to date.
Alhaji Ahmed Tangaza, Chairman of the Sokoto State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners ( NUP) disclosed this in Sokoto on Tuesday.
He spoke at a special prayer session organised by the union, to seek God’s intervention in the payment of the arrears of the federal pensions.
“We have some 9,000 pensioners under the state government and the 23 local governments of the state and close to 2,000 of them who have worked before March 1976, have federal shares of pension,’’ he explained.
He said that the arrears of the federal shares of pensions, owing the pensioners nationwide since 2,000 amounted to trillions of naira.
“We were told that the Federal Government had recently set aside about N176 billion to defray part of the arrears.
“These arrears had yet to be paid after over six verifications with the last biometric conducted about three months ago,â€Â Tangaza stated.
The chairman appealed to the Federal Government to come to the aid of the union by paying such entitlement without further delay.
He said that, the pensioners might convene a nationwide prayer if the arrears were not paid within the next two weeks.
Tangaza also condemned some of the banks for delaying the payment of their monthly pensions and other entitlements.
He however, commended the state government for ensuring the prompt payment of gratuities to its retired workers.
“We are, however, appealing for the implementation of the new 15.5 and 12 per cent of pensions and the immediate payment of some pension arrears for new retirees.
These retirees, he said, were those in the Primary Schools Pensions Board, as approved by the governor, Tangaza said.
Also contributing, a National Trustee of the union, Alhaji Sani Iya, appealed to the officials handling pension matters at all levels to “fear God and have mercy on the pensioners.
“They should also bear in mind that, they will become pensioners one day if they are lucky. They should fear God,’’ he added .
Reacting, Sokoto State Finance Commissioner, Alhaji Faruku Yabo said that, all the finance commissioners across the nation were aware of the plight of the pensioners about their federal shares.
“We are all concerned and we are working round the clock jointly to ensure that they get paid as soon as possible,’’ he said.
Yabo further said that the governor of the state, Alhaji Aliyu Wamakko, had approved the payment of the N53 million pension arrears owed the newly retired primary school teachers in the state.