“We Are In A Great Poverty”

Pensioners have cried out to President Muhammadu Buhari to save their souls from the pains of poverty following non-payment of their pension arrears which have accumulated for several months.
Making the cry yesterday in Calabar, President of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, NUP, Dr Abel Afolayan while addressing journalists listed twelve areas where pensioners have been subjected to severe difficulties which need to be addressed urgently by the President to save the souls of members.
Dr Afolayan listed those areas to include non-compliance with constitutional provision by the yearly review of 5% pension, non harmonisation of old and new pensions, arbitrary deductions from pensions, non remittance of federal government counterpart funding into local government pension fund among others.
“Pension arrears have piled up over the years during the regimes of past administrations with ‘mountains of complaint” forms submitted by pensioners and inherited by Pension Transitional Arrangements Directorate which still lie unattended to for several years”.

The NUP President who was represented by Elder Tubonimi Sukuyep, the National Vice President South- South of the NUP said the government has not complied
with the annual review of pension as stipulated by the Constitution. “1999 Constitution of Nigeria stipulates that pensions shall be reviewed every five years or together with any Federal Civil Service salary reviews whichever is earlier; the last pension review was in July 2010, the pensioners are therefore eagerly waiting for the implementation of the review in compliance with the Constitution”.
The pensioners President also complained of arbitrary deductions from stipends of members which is negatively impacting on their welfare because their finances are being severely affected. “We do not pay tax, as pension is tax free therefore our rightful entitlement should be 53.4% but as at now only 33% approved for our members are in arrears of thirty months”.

They also complained of non-payment of death benefits to next of kins of deceased pensioners which is subjecting the families of deceased pensioners to unnecessary difficulties and hardships. “We would humbly like to plead that death benefits of deceased pensioners should be paid without any further delay”.