Category: Pension

HAMZA: Good Day. God bless you for the updates and solutions you have been finding to retired and non-retired persons’problems.

I am Hamza. I retired from NIPOST. I have been verified and enrolled. But up till this moment, I have not received any information on my accrued right or total balance of my RSA. Kindly help me.

PENCOM: Please, forward the photocopy of your verification slip, which was given to you upon completion of the enrolment for us to investigate further.

MUJA: My name is Muja from Suleja, Niger State. I worked at a  private security firm, where they do not give letter of appointment or  disengagement.

I have been out of job for over six years. I have some money with my PFA. I need it to sustain myself. I called a staff member who said I have to do some documentation which employer doesn’t give as I earlier stated. Please, what do I do to get my money? Muja.

PENCOM: Please, visit your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) who will guide you to access your Retirement Savings Account (RSA).

JOE: My name is Joe, the next-of-kin to the late Daniel who worked with the National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) as a contract staff. He was deputy director in charge of Warri office. His contract expired in 2013. He died in 2020. I have submitted my documents to Stanbic IBTC for the payment of his RSA contribution and others but I am yet to hear from them.

The last time I was at their office, I was told that PenCom had not sent it back or approved it. Please, I need urgent response from PenCom.

PENCOM: Investigations have shown that Daniel’s benefits are being processed. Please, be patient as you will be contacted by the Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) once payment has been effected.

AMIRIUGO:  My father Mr. Amuriugo worked with the Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Drilling Section, Abuja. He died on April 14, 2013. I am his next-of-kin. My complaint is the non-payment of his pension.

PENCOM: Please, forward his details such as his Retirement Savings Account (RSA) PIN, name of Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) and other  information that will assist in resolving your complaint.

ADEBUKOLA: I am Mrs. Babalola. My late husband, Gholahan, worked with  the National Commission for Refugees and Internally Misplaced Person in Abuja. He died in 2018.

His PFA is First Guarantee Pension Limited. But PenCom has refused to pay his pension. I was told his accrued right had been released but nothing has been paid.  Kindly help me.

PENCOM: Please, be informed that your late husband’s benefits have been paid. Kindly liaise with his Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) for more information.

UWEM: Good day, my uncle,  Godwin Uwem, was a teacher at the Poly Staff School, Ibadan for many years. He was retired five years ago without gratuity.

At present, he is languishing. He has turned to a beggar. Worse still, his children roam the streets of Ibadan daily in search of what to eat. Every effort to meet the Provost of Ibadan Poly proved abortive. Please, how can you help to salvage the elderly man and his suffering children?

PENCOM: Please, provide your uncle’s PFA and RSA PIN details to enable the commission investigate further.

HASSAN: I am Hassan. My RSA shows that there was no remittance by my employer in 2015, 2016, 2017 and part of 2014 and 2018. Please, help find out why.

PENCOM: Please, write to the commission, stating non-remittance of pension contributions by your employer.

ANNONYMOUS: I retired in June 2016 from the Federal Polytechnic, Bida. I was paid my benefits in July 2017 through my PFA, Premium Pension. I then transferred to Leadway for annuity.

I am being owed 24 months.The Federal Government has released funds to pay 2.5 per cent out of the 10 per cent it is owing. When and how will this money be paid?

PENCOM: Please, be advised that if the amount payable is less than N100,000, it will be paid into your bank account. However, for payments above N100,000, you are advised to purchase a second annuity from a Retiree Life Annuity (RLA) provider.

ABDULLAHI: Good day, my name is Abdullahi, the son of late Inspector Etubi. You earlier informed me that everything had been settled. We were asked to provide our father’s name and RSA PIN to enable the commission to investigate further which we have provided. We were told in The Nation that we are among the next batch to be paid. But we are yet to be paid. Kindly help.

PENCOM: Investigation has shown that there is no submission of such details in our database. Kindly visit your PFA to ensure that your documents were further submitted to the commission.

OGUNLEYE: My name is Ogunleye. I retired from NIPOST. The issue of 2.5 per cent approved by President Buhari sometime ago has not been paid up.

My question is: What is delaying the payment to the affected retirees?

I understood that PenCom had directed the PFAS to spread it in our monthly pension. I think this decision should be rescinded.

PENCOM: Please, note that the eligibility for the arrears of 2.5 per cent employer portion of pension contribution took effect from July 2014. It was paid based on regulations on how additional retirement benefit income are treated.

Please, visit your PFA as the payment has been made if you retired anytime from July 2014.

Ondo State pensioners who are being owed N68 billion in pension and gratuities have threatened to take the government to court.

Ihe Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), Ondo State accused the Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, of denying them of their entitlements.

In an interview, NUP Chairman, Johnson Osunyemi, said their monthly pensions were being paid in instalments and that they were yet to collect that of last October . Also, he said local government pensioners were yet to get that of last November.

He noted that the state pays N200 million monthly for state pensions and N50 million local government pensions.

The union urged the governor to clear the arrears or face their wrath.

He said: “We have issues with our pension to the extent that pension is not paid as at when due. For instance, the pensioners are yet to collect their October 2021 pensions while LGA are yet to collect November pension. Irrespective of the fact that the payments are not made as at when due, the issue of percentage payment does not make things to work well for us. We are not been paid fully. Sometimes, state governments pay 80 per cent or less.

“On gratuity, we have huge backlog. We are owed N68 billion. Although the state releases N200 million monthly to state and N50 million to local government, yet it is not enough. What normally happens is that a pensioner who is supposed to collect N10 million as gratuity is being paid N500,000. For local government, the highest pay is about N200,000.

“Despite that gratuity payment is supposed to be a one-off payment, it is being paid instalmentally.

“Even those that are paid in bits, as I stated, are the pensioners who can warm their way up to the top. At present, we have 2011 pensioners who have not collected gratuities at the state level.The last time they made payment was in 2013.

“We did not go to court before now because the NUP at the Southwest level is taking a collective decision. But we have given the governor warning that failure to adhere to our request, we will be left with no other option than to take him to court,” he added.

Osunyemi said the CPS was picking up but that it had not been extended to the main stream of the government. I think they have started with some agencies.

“The problem with CPS is the issue of non-remittance of contributions. The government deducts some from employees’ salary, but would fail to pay their portion of the contribution and would not remit anything to the employee’s Retirement Savings Account. The government has not been faithful,” he lamented.

The Akwa Ibom State chapter, Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has reached a truce with the state government  over unpaid entitlements, the state NUT Chairman, Edet Emenyi, has said.

It has, therefore, suspended its strike over the matter.

Emenyi in a statement entitled “Suspension of strike” stated that the suspension of the strike was sequel to the agreement they had with the government.

To this end, he directed teachers to resume work.

He said: “The leadership of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) Akwa Ibom State wing hereby suspend its industrial action earlier declared against the Akwa Ibom State government of Tuesday, March 15, 2022. This is sequel to negotiation between the government team led by Governor Udom Emmanuel and the leadership of the NUT led by Comrade Edet Emenyi on March 17, 2022.

“Both parties also agreed on the appointment of a Committee comprising NUT, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), and government’s representatives to dialogue on the template for instalmental payment of 2019, 2020, and 2021 leave grants to primary school teachers.

“Others include payment of promotion arrears for 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016 to primary schools teachers, immediate commencement of 2019, 2020, and 2021 promotion to teachers and payment of 7.5 per cent contributory pension refunds to teachers as soon as records are reconciled and other issues listed in the strike bulletin.’’

The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has sanctioned 28 employers for failing to remit N164.56 million pension of their employees, its Director-General, Mrs. Aisha Dahir-Umar has said.

She said this is aside the principal contribution of N394.78 million recovered from the erring employers.

Mrs. Dahir-Umar, who made this known in the commission’s Third Quarter Report, stated that  a defaulter had been recommended for legal action.

She said: “Following the issuance of demand notices to defaulting employers whose pension liabilities were established by the Recovery Agents (RAs), N559.35 million representing principal contribution of N394.78 million and penalty N164.56 million was recovered from 28 defaulting employers during the quarter under review.

“Meanwhile, 29 defaulting employers have been recommended for appropriate legal action.”

Giving update on refund of pension contributions to personnel of the military and other security agencies in the quarter under review, she said the Commission approved the refund of N6.93 million to 35 personnel of the military and other security agencies exempted from the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).

Pensioners in Rivers State  have decried the non-payment of their almost 40 months’arrears of pensions and gratuities.

They have, therefore, urged Governor Nyesom Wike to clear them before he quits office.

The Chairman of Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), Lucky Ati, stated this in reaction to a declaration by the governor, that it was time for him to concentrate on ‘stomach infrastructure’ (welfare), having done enough in the provision of amenities since he assumed office in 2015.

Ati said beside pensions, no gratuities or their accumulated arrears had been paid.

The National Pension Commission’s (PenCom’s) status of implementation of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and other pension schemes adopted by state governments show that Rivers has enacted a law on the CPS.

Having keyed into the CPS, the state government established a Pension Bureau and Board in line with CPS law, to manage the CPS.

Similarly, the state has done an actuarial valuation on the scheme. The purpose of actuarial valuation is to enable the state government to know its pension liability to the state employees who under the old Defined Benefits Scheme before the commencement of the CPS.

Besides, the state has opened a Retirement Benefits Bonds Redemption Fund Account (RBBRFA).The RBBRFA is an account where a specific amount based on actuarial calculation, which is a percentage of the salaries of the public servants of the state, who are members of the CPS is paid.

The funds are invested and used to pay the accrued rights of employees who were in service before the CPS.

Pension advocate, Mr. Ivor Takor, in a report, entitled: “Between Rivers State development, workers’ pension right and stomach infrastructure”, stated that the Retirement Benefits Bonds Redemption Fund Account (RBBRFA) is the beginning of the problems of employees and pensioners of the state.

He said the Rivers Government had not been funding the RBBRFA from where accrued rights of retiring employees are paid.

He noted that the state government funded the accounts once in 2012 with N300 million.

The reason for the funding, he said, had nothing to do with its desire to pay accrued rights of retiring employees.

Rather, the motivation was because the state government wanted to float a bond and was eyeing pension funds for that purpose, he added.

He said: “However, because PenCom came out with a policy that pension funds will not be invested in any bond of a state government that has not keyed into the CPS, the state government paid the money as proof of having fully keyed into the scheme. All those who are retiring are those who were in service before the commencement of the CPS and the bulk of the money from where their gratuities and pensions are to be paid from is under the accrued rights.

“Therefore, on retirement, without money in the RBBRFA, their gratuity and pension cannot be paid.

“The second problem is that of remittance of contributions. The state government has only been remitting the contributions of the employees into their RSAs.This means that the state government  has not been contributing for the pension of her employees, which is a contravention of its pension law.

“It is for the above two reason that retiring employees of Rivers are being owed pensions and gratuities. The non-funding of the RBBRFA does not guarantee the payment of accrued pension rights of retiring employees. This is compounded by  the Rivers government non-compliance with her pension law by the non-contributions for employees’ pension.

“The most effective way for employers (public and private) to secure their employees from old age poverty and destitution is through a pension plan. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has declared social security, with pension as a pillar, a human right, which in practical terms is understood as a need to guarantee universal protection.There are two legal frameworks that guarantee pensions – international and national. The international legal frameworks are two namely, the ILO Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No.102), a core ILO Convention, which Nigeria, a member of ILO has ratified.

“The second is the ILO Invalidity, Old Age and Survivors’ Benefits Convention, 1967 (No.128). This Convention envisage the provision of income security to people who have reached pensionable age.”

Takor added: “The ILO Conventions have been domesticated in national laws. For workers in the service of state governments, section 210 (1) of the 1999 Federal Republic of Nigeria Constitution (as amended) provides that “Subject to the provisions of subsection (2) of this section, the right of a person in the public service of a State to receive pension or gratuity shall be regulated by law”.

“While subsection (2) of the section provides that “Any benefit to which a person is entitled in accordance with or under such law as is referred to in subsection (1) of this section shall not be withheld or altered to his disadvantage except to such extent as is permissible under any law, including the Code of Conduct.’’

It is in compliance with these Constitutional provisions that Rivers State Government and others enacted pension laws for their employees.’’

“Pension helps an individual to maintain a standard of living close to when the individual was in active service in retirement because it guarantees a monthly income for life. It is therefore not surprising, that most Nigerians still want pension. Some former Governors enacted laws granting life pension for themselves and their deputies. The latest attempt was at the National Assembly, where some federal legislators wanted to insert pension for Principal Officers of the National Assembly in the Constitution.

 

“Therefore, the reaction of Lucky Ati the Rivers State Chairperson of Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) on Governor Wike’s stomach infrastructure should not be seen as a criticism of the policy but a reminder and a wakeup call to the state governor on his government’s liability to the workers and pensioners of the state. The press in reporting Wike’s stomach infrastructure policy, credited him to haven said that the empowerments that the policy will bring is for those who have been patience. No categories of citizens of Rivers State have been patient with the governor like the State civil servants and pensioners. They have patiently kept quiet as their constitutionally guaranteed rights to pension is being withheld and altered by the state government.

“I therefore join workers and pensioners of Rivers State, who are not among those with “opportunities” of being able to primitively accumulate fraudulent and ill-gotten wealth during their service to the state to appeal to Governor Wike to comply with the provisions of ILO Conventions, the Constitution and the Pension Law of the State. This is will be done by paying pensioners the arrears of their pensions and gratuities as well as releasing money for accrued rights and employer’s contributions under the Contributory Pension Scheme”.

He added that in doing so, he will be leaving a legacy as a Governor who addressed issues connected with the nagging issues of taking the state pensioners out of the line of old age poverty and destitution.

It is not a gratuitous matter it is a guaranteed right. The State has the resources to enable the Governor to do that. It is a matter of the political will to do so, he said.

MICHAEL: Good day, my name is Friday Michael. I applied for my 25 per cent arrears’ contribution last month from my PFA, Premium Pension. I am yet to be paid. Kindly help me.

PENCOM: Please be advised that the Commission is processing your benefits and your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) will notify you once this is concluded. Thank you.

BROWN: My name is Brown. I was born on February 19, 1965. I retired from Nigerian Customs Service in 2016. My PFA is: Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers. But I am yet to get my entitlements.

ANNONYMOUS: How long does it take to transfer Accrued Pension Rights to PFA RSA? Thanks.

HAMZA: I am Hamza. God bless you for the updates and solutions you have been finding for the retired and the non-retired.

I retired from NIPOST on February 10, last year. I have been verified and enrolled. But up till this moment, I have not received any information on either my accrued right or the total balance of my RSA. Kindly help me.

ABDULLAHI: Good day, my name is Abdullahi. the son of the late Inspector Etubi. Earlier, you informed me that everything had been settled. We were asked to provide our father’s name and RSA PIN to enable the commission to investigate further. We have provided them. We were told inThe Nation publication that we were among the next batch to be paid. But we are yet to get the cash. Kindly help.

PENCOM: An investigation has shown that no document has been submitted to our database.

Kindly visit your PFA to ensure that your documents were submitted to the Commission.

ANNONYMOUS: I retired in June 2016 from Federal Polytechnic, Bida. I was paid my benefits in July 2017 through my PFA, Premium Pension. I then transferred to Leadway for Annuity.

But I am being owed 24 months. The Federal Government recently said it had released funds to pay 2.5 per cent  out of the 10 per cent it is owing. When and how will this money be paid?

PENCOM: Please be advised that if the amount payable is less than N100,000, it will be paid into your bank account.

However, for payments above N100,000, you are advised to purchase a second annuity from a Retiree Life Annuity (RLA) provider.

GIMBA: Good day. My complaint is about the non-release of my pension since October 2020. My name is Gimba from Federal Polytechnic, Bida.

PENCOM: You are advised to kindly forward your details such as your Retirement Savings Account (RSA) Pin, Pension Fund Administrator (PFA), full name as well as other valid information to enable us investigate further. Please be advised that retirees of Federal Government Tertiary-Funded Ministries, Departments and Agencies are required to undergo verification and enrolment prior to retirement.

If you are yet to undergo this process, kindly visit http://www.pencom.gov.ng to initiate the process and then proceed to your PFA for physical verification and enrolment. In addition, please be informed that the Commission has paid the benefits of retirees who retired from January to December 2020.

AKEREDOLU: Greetings to The Nation. God bless you more for the good works you are doing for pensioners. Please, I want to know the reason the PenCom or PFAs are not paying the arrears of retirees who quit office in 2014, 2015, 2016, etc up till now. My PFA, Legacy FCMB Pension, does not send me any information or alert. I want to know what they are doing with my money. PenCom should warn or sanction my PFA for not communicating to me.

PENCOM: Please visit your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) as the payment has been effected from the commission.

ANNONYMOUS: I am a police officer. I want to know if PenCom has a branch office in Ibadan, Oyo State.

PENCOM: PenCom does not have an office in Ibadan. However, our nearest office is located at 88A, Oduduwa Crescent, Ikeja GRA, Lagos State.

MUJA: My name is Muja from Suleja, Niger State. I worked with private security firm, where we were not given a letter of appointment of employment or when disengaging personnel a sack letter. I have been out of job for over six years.

I have contributions with my PFA. I need it to sustain myself. I called a staff member who said I have to do some documentation, which employer doesn’t give as I earlier stated.

Please, what do I do to get my money? Kindly assist.

ANNONYMOUS: I want to remain anonymous. I would like to know if the 2.5 per cent shortfall paid to those  on Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) affect their monthly pension? I ask because it is a shortfall of what we were supposed to be paid when we retire from service.

ADEBUKOLA: I am Mrs. Babalola. My late husband, Gholahan, passed away in 2018 and PenCom has refused to pay his pension. I was told his accrued right has been released, but nothing has been paid yet.

He worked with the National Commission for Refugees and Internally Misplaced Person in Abuja. His PFA is First Guarantee Pension Limited. Kindly assist.

THE NATION: The newspaper will intervene. Therefore, Muja and Adebukola should look out for the newspaper next week for responses from PenCom.

The Pension Transitional Arrangement Department (PTAD) is partnering the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Offences Commission (ICPC) to combat pension syndicates, the Director, Parastatals Pension Department, PTAD, Mr. Kabiru Yusuf has said.

Yusuf, who spoke with reporters in Lagos, said there is a syndicate that have its tentacles in the public service departments, adding that the department is employing techonology to solve the problem.

He said the criminals are using every instrument at their disposal  to hide their activities from the public.

He said the PTAD is not surprised at the high-level resistance by those who have been draining the federal pension funds for decades.

THE pension fund reached N13.61 trillion by January, this year, the Director-General, National Pension Commission, Mrs. Aisha Dahir-Umar, has said.

She made this known in the commission’s report on pension funds industry portfolio for the period ended January 31, 2022.

She stated that the fund assets gained N183.81 billion between December 31, 2021 and January 31, 2022, while the total number of Retirement Savings Account (RSA) holders stood at 9.55 million as at the end of January.

According to her, the fund in Dollar terms was $32.77 billion attained at exchange rate of N415.26/$.

She further said N8.35 trillion of the N13.61 trillion was invested in Federal Government securities, while state government securities got N170.33 billion and local money market securities gulped N2.28 trillion.

 

 

FRIDAY: My name is Friday. Though I applied for my 25 per cent arrears’ contribution last month from my PFA, Premium Pension, I am yet to be paid. Kindly help.

PENCOM: Please be advised that the Commission is processing your benefits. Your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) will notify you once it has been concluded. Thank You.

OGBAJE: My name is Ogbaje, a retired Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP). I retired in 2019, but my resettlement allowance has not been paid. Can you help trace it?

PENCOM: Investigations show that your retirement benefits have been paid since October 2020. Kindly visit your pension fund administrator (PFA) for more details. Thank you.

ADETUNJI: I am Adetunji. I reside in Ibadan, the Ogun State capital.

My daughter just got a job and she was asked to open a Retirement Savings Account (RSA). Please, how do we go about it. Thank you..

PENCOM: Please visit the commission’s website at http://www.pencom.gov.ng for a list of Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) and their contact details.

Please feel free to contact any of them so they can advise you of their nearest branch to you. They would assist you in the opening of a Retirement Savings Account (RSA) for your daughter. Thank you.

ANDERSON: Good day. I am  Anderson Anzaku, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP). It is quite some years since I last received my monthly SMS. I do not know what is in the Savings account. Please help me.

PENCOM: Please visit your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) so they can update your telephone number as well as your email address for you to receive alerts and statemets monthly. Thank You.

JOE: My name is Joe, the next-of- kin to the late Mr. Daniel, the National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC), Deputy Director, Warri office.

His contract expired in 2013 and  died seven years later. I have submitted all documents to Stanbic IBTC Pension for his RSA contribution and others, but I did not hear from them. The last time I was there I was told that NPC had not sent the approval. Please, help get response from NPC. Thank you.

PENCOM: Please forward to us some information such as the RSA PIN, full name as well as Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) for us to investigate further. thank you.

TIMILEHIN: Good day, my name is Timilehin and I am a retired soldier. All efforts to get my voluntary pension contributions from Stanbic IBTC Pension management have proved abortive, despite meeting  their requirements.

SUPOL BROWNSON: Hello, I am Supol Brownson, a retired Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP). I retired from the police on February 4, 2019, having done the verification with PenCom officials in August 2018 at the University of Port Harcourt,  Port Harcourt.

Since then, I have not received any payment. Please help me.

PENCOM: Investigations show that your retirement benefits had been paid since May 2021. Kindly visit your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) for more details. Thank you.

OLADIPUPO: Dear Omobola, my name is Oladipupo. I really appreciate the time and energy you are expending on pension complaints.

This is the third time I am writing to you. I have no issue with my PFA, Stanbic IBTC.

Also, my long unanswered question has been answered when I read, “Over 500 retirees benefit from MPG.” in The Nation of November 24, 2021, page 24. God bless the newspaper.

However, with Reference to “75% lump sum payment”, it is dangerous for the pension industry to allow it happen and more dangerous for most of the pensioners. It will jeopardise the purpose of preventing pensioners from dying in penury in a country adjudged as home base of the world’s poorest.

How many of those agitating for the lump sum payment of government subsidised pension could manage the salaries, bogus and frivolous allowances earned in service?

Please, let the pension remains as it is but the enhancement be improved upon and promptly. Thank you.

MRS OKON: I am Mrs. Okon. Before I retired on September 25,  2020, I took promotion interview to Director in the Federal civil service. The result came in last year. I had done the verification in my former office. Please, how do I upgrade my pension.

PENCOM: A copy of the promotion letter indicating grade level and step and effective date  should be   forwarded to PenCom along with a copy of your registration slip obtained during enrolment.

DANIEL: My name is Daniel and I am a next-of-kin to Mrs Grace Ameh. I received some fund in my UBA account which I believe was her RSA contribution with Sigma Pensions.

We are awaiting the death/life assurance benefits of the late Mrs Grace,  a staff member of the Federal Poly, Idah, who died in February 2015 after 10 years in service.

PENCOM: You are advised to contact Mrs. Ameh’s employer who should process the proceeds of the group life insurance policy and    ensure that payment by the insurance company to her beneficiaries since she died in active service. Thank you.