Pensioners call on president to look into pension funds

The President, Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Electricity sector, Malam Isa Olarewaju, has called on President Muhamadu Buhari to look into the pension funds, including benefits and arrears.

Olarewaju made the appeal during a peaceful protest by members of the union on Friday in Bauchi.

Olarewaju said that harmonised arrears for 10 years were still not paid, claiming that in spite of the N16 billion pension funds pensioners were yet to be paid.

"President Buhari, should please look into our problems and address the issues of pensioners.

'Some of us are dead while others are sick; their families have to be moving them from one place to the other.

"The union dues that we pay is what we use in catering for our sick members, and the sum of N16 billion is there and we are not paid anything out of it,’’ he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that members of the union were seen carrying placards with different inscriptions.

Some of the placards read: "Send unpaid gratuities and death benefits to next of kin’’, "Pay us 12 per cent of pension increase arrears and monetisation arrears’’, among others.

A retired federal civil servant in Bauchi, Alhaji Ahmed Abubakar, told NAN that since his retirement in 1989, he has not received any benefit or gratuity from the federal government.

He said that he retired from the Nigerian Telecommunication Company (NITEL) as General Manager of the North-East zone.

Abubakar explained that several efforts to trace the problem proved abortive as such he has given up hope.

"Since when I retired in 1989, I have never in my life received any pension from government or gratuity, and I left office as a General Manager.

"I have contributed immensely to national development; I was part of those who re-organise the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Nigerian Customs Service, among other parastatals, but I receive nothing up to date,’’ he said.