The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) between 2015 and 2022 paid N40.332 billion as pension arrears to 161,122 verified pensioners across the four Ppension departments, The Nation has learnt.
Findings show that the Directorate reinstated 40,918 verified pensioners to the monthly pension payroll in the period under review.
Besides, the Directorate paid N7.134 billion as final pension entitlements to Next-of-Kin of deceased pensioners across the four Pension departments, it stated.
Last month, the Directorate paid over N9.254 as monthly pensions to 229,256 verified pensioners across the Civil Service, Police, Parastatals, Customs, Immigration and Prisons Pension Departments.
In the same vein, over N351.264 million was paid as arrears to 3,089 pensioners.
Overall, it was gathered that the Directorate does not owe monthly pension
The Directorate in a message on its website, however, said that incidences of failed pension payments in the month under review had been re-presented on the GIFMIS payment platform and confirmed received by the affected pensioners.
The Directorate said it has, in line with its mandate to transform the management of the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS), ensured that monthly pension payment is prompt, consistent and unbroken since 2014 when it took over pension payment.
According to the message, this standard was maintained even during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in 2020.
The message read: “In December 2021, PTAD through the commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Central Bank of Nigeria completed the payment of inherited liabilities due to ex-workers of two of the Ddefunct agencies, namely, 287 Nigeria Reinsurance Corporation pensioners totalling N948.054 million and 509 New Nigeria Newspapers Limited pensioners were paid a total of N2.134 billion.
“A significant portion of the outstanding liabilities was also paid to ex-workers of three defunct agencies: 11,239 Nigerian Telecommunications Limited and its mobile subsidiary, MTEL pensioners received a total of N11.685 billion; 1,046 NICON Insurance Corporation pensioners were paid N1.140 billion while 3,657 Delta Steel Company Limited pensioners were paid N1.821 billion.
“In the same vein and following the implementation of 9.7 per cent increment to Ex-PHCN workers, PTAD paid a total N6.889 billion in December 2021 to all eligible 9,389 Ex-PHCN retirees”.
It further read: “In addition, PTAD has completed the payment of all arrears of pension due to pensioners as a result of the Consequential Pension Adjustment approved by the President in April 2021 but with effect from April 2019. By December 2021, PTAD had paid all 24-months arrears due to pensioners of three pension departments except Civil Service Pensioners whose outstanding balance of three months was paid in May 2022.
“With the commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari, between 2015 and 2022, PTAD has reinstated 40,918 verified eligible pensioners to the monthly pension payroll, paid N40.332 billion as pension arrears to 161,122 verified eligible pensioners across the four Pension departments and paid N7.134 billion as final pension entitlements to Next of Kin of deceased pensioners across the four Pension departments,” it stated.