The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) has expressed deep concerns over the severe conditions facing public retirees, with some reportedly receiving as little as N500 as a monthly pension.
The union has expressed frustration over the continued neglect of pensioners, particularly in Southern and oil-producing states.
Alhassan Musa, Secretary of the NUP in Kaduna State, described the situation as “pathetic,” highlighting the precarious state of retirees who, after years of service to the nation, are left struggling to survive.
“The worst affected are pensioners in most of the Southern and oil-producing states despite getting fat allocations from the federation account. The condition of pensioners in some Northern states and the FCT is far better, as some of them receive between N3,500 and N18,000 monthly pension,” Musa stated.
According to Vanguard, Musa, who also serves as the NUP secretary for the 19 Northern states and the North-West, noted that only retirees in Kaduna State receive a minimum monthly pension of N30,000.
He credited this to the Kaduna state government’s decision to implement the N30,000 minimum pension during Governor Nasir El-Rufa’i’s administration in 2020.
Reflecting on the union’s ongoing efforts, Musa said, “The union proposed a 50 per cent increment even under the defunct N30,000 national minimum wage. We are anticipating that the 50 per cent increase would be approved in line with the new N70,000 national minimum wage. Even under the Federal Government, some pensioners are receiving N10,000 minimum pension. We are hoping that the Federal Government will balance it up so that no pensioner will receive less than N70,000 as his/her monthly pension.”
“Let pensioners also enjoy the same benefits the workers are enjoying. If a worker is receiving N70,000 minimum salary, so, let the pensioner enjoy the same,” he added.
Musa also highlighted the struggles faced by those who retired under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), many of whom have yet to receive their benefits even after a decade.
“Honestly, these people are facing a lot of challenges because some of them retired in the last 10 years, and yet to draw their benefits. It is really pathetic, this is happening in Kaduna and other states. Even under the federal government, those who retired under the contributory pension scheme are suffering as their accruals are yet to be remitted into their accounts,” he lamented.
According to him, the situation is exacerbated by the failure of various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to remit monthly contributions to workers’ accounts on time.
He said that retirees should be placed on pension within three months of retirement and receive their lump sum as required.
“This is because they are not remitting the money as at when due as being expected of them,” Musa concluded.
