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Tag: pension

  • Kwara explains delay of February pension payment

    The Kwara Government on Thursday said late receipt of elements of federal allocation was responsible for the delay in payment of pension in February.

    The state Commissioner for Finance, Alhaji Ademola Banu, gave the reason in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin.

    He explained that FAAC elements such as statutory allocation, Value Added Tax (VAT) and exchange gain difference had, however, been received.

    Banu said the state government still awaited the receipt of excess Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT), which stood at N332.05 million.

    He, however, disclosed that the pensioners and staff of ministries, departments and agencies had started receiving their payment on Wednesday.

    The commissioner further noted that due to the financial arrangements of the Federal Government, elements of monthly allocations were received at separate intervals.

    According to him, the installment receipt is sometimes responsible for the delay in payment of salaries, pensions, overhead and subventions to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the state.

    He commended the retirees and affected workers for their patience and assured that the government would always strive to ensure prompt payment of monthly entitlements.

     

  • Ikpeazu to pay Kalu’s pension

    Ikpeazu to pay Kalu’s pension

    Abia State Governor Okezie Ikpeazu has directed government agencies to begin the payment of pension to former Governor Orji Uzor Kalu and former Deputy Governor Emeka Ananaba.

    A statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Enyinnaya Appolos, said this followed Kalu’s and Ananaba’s letters, demanding their entitlements.

    Ananaba is allegedly being owed his entitlements after serving former Governor Theodore Orji; Kalu is owed from 2009 till date.

    The statement reads: “Kalu and Ananaba who served at different periods wrote in their capacity as former governor and deputy governo in lieu of their entitlements as contained in the Abia State Governor/Deputy Governor’s Pension Law 2001.

    “Governor Ikpeazu has directed relevant officials of the state to begin the process of verification of their entitlements as former elected officials of the state in accordance with relevant state and federal laws.

    “…Kalu’s demand letter, dated January 23,  was titled: “Re: My outstanding unpaid entitlements: Reminder”

    “Kalu was governor from 1999 to 2007.  He was paid all his entitlements by former Governor Orji, until 2009.

    “Orji and former Deputy Governor Enyinnaya Abaribe,  who are representing Abia Central and Abia South in the Senate, are not yet entitled to pension from the state and have not made demands for payment.”

  • Kalu: my pension has not been paid

    Kalu: my pension has not been paid

    Former Abia State Governor Orji Uzor Kalu has dissociated himself from a purported report that 108 ex-governors live off their states through pensions and entitlements.
    The former governor said since he left office, he has not received any entitlement or privileges from his successors, adding that as a non-serving government official, the Abia State government has withheld his pensions and entitlements, making him the only ex-governor in the 36 states that does not receive pension.
    Kalu, who was governor from 1999 to 2007, was fielding questions from reporters yesterday at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
    He recalled that as governor, it was one of his most important obligations to see that pensioners were paid timely. He said he left the state without owing any pensioner, adding that he left behind all government vehicles and other property.
    Kalu regretted that none of the privileges that accrue to former governors have been extended to him, not even the security attaché or vehicles.
    His words: “Since 2009, I have not received any pension or entitlement from the state government, but I took it in good faith. I have written to my successors, telling them of how they were flouting the laws by withholding my pensions, but it was ignored.
    “If it is out of will to disregard the law, I shall instruct my lawyers to take legal action against the governor for denying me my rights. If the present governor cannot resolve it, I will seek redress in the court. It doesn’t matter what I will be doing with the money. I can channel it into humanitarian service and philanthropy but the laws must be obeyed.”

  • Pension law: Govt, Labour bicker

    Pension law: Govt, Labour bicker

    Organised Labour in Ebonyi State has accused the government of deducting workers’ salaries before passage of the contributory pension law.

    A statement by Ikechukwu Nwafor (Nigeria Labour Congress NLC), Michael Nwonu (Trade Union CongressTUC) and  Patrick Ekwe (Joint Public Service Negotiating Committee JPSNC)  said the deduction was illegal as its law had not been passed.

    They maintained that the deduction should be the last action in the passage and implementation of the scheme.

    The labour leaders accused the government of not following due process.

    But the government denied deducting workers’ salaries.

    Special Adviser to Governor David Umahi on Labour Relations Mrs. Grace Chukwu said the allegation was baseless and an attempt to mislead and incite workers against the government.

    Mrs Chukwu urged the labour leaders to support the new pension law.

    “The labour leader were consulted, they were involved in the process.

    “They were at the House of Assembly during the public hearing on the matter and they made their input.

    “We are surprised that they issued a statement denying that they were not consulted. The labour leaders have been part of this administration.

    “Let me make it clear that workers’ salaries were not deducted as claimed,”she said.

  • PTAD, please pay my pension arrears

    SIR: I retired voluntarily as a Principal Executive Officer [Accounts] Grade Level 12 Step 9 in the Federal Ministry of Education, Abuja on December 1, 2003. My monthly pension is supposed to commence in September 2009 due to my age at the time of retirement. I took part in the E-PENSION VERIFICATION EXERCISE in September, 2010 at the Federal Civil Service Club, Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, Lagos. But up till now, I am yet to collect any money as my monthly pension because I am yet to be enrolled into monthly pension payroll.

    This situation has meted untold hardship to me and my family as I have not been able to meet most of my financial obligations and commitments. Apart from this, all the feasibility reports concerning some viable business proposals I have written are all lying idle because of lack of funds.

    My name is HASSAN SAMUSI OLUSEGUN. My E-pension number is EPENHOS127375 and my file number at the Federal Ministry of Education is P62563. My phone numbers are: 08036400740, 07084399033

     

    • Hassan Samusi Olusegun,

    Lagos.

  • Unpaid salaries, pensions: NLC, TUC to launch mass action

    Unpaid salaries, pensions: NLC, TUC to launch mass action

    The organised  labour says it has concluded plans to commence a series of mass actions against those states that are owing workers’  salaries,   pensions  and gratuities in the country.

    The President of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Mr Ayuba Wabba, stated this at a news conference in Abuja on Monday.

    Wabba said that the mass action would be done in collaboration with the Trade Union Congress (TUC) as part of the initiatives to make the mass action a successful one.

    The NLC president said the action had become necessary to demonstrate the anger of the workers over the insensitive dispositions of the affected states.

    He said that the affected states, apart from receiving several bailout grants from the Federal Government, also got substantial funds from the Paris Club refunds.

    “In spite of the Paris Club refunds to some of the states, some of them are not making efforts to ensure that workers interest is given the priority it deserved.

    “Gratuity in most of the states are also building up, we have liability of gratuity ranging between seven months and some 77 months.

    “The worst-case scenario is Imo, where we have liability of gratuity of 77 months with pensions.

    Wabba said that the Imo government had contemplated paying the pensioners 60 per cent of their 77 months’ pension arrears which the pensioners had rejected.

    According to Wabba, some states receive less but they do not have liability of salaries and pensions while some receive much but have accumulated liabilities.

    He said that the organised labour would also hold a one-day rally on good governance and anti-corruption campaign.

    Wabba said that the rally would be held at the instance of the NLC and the TUC.

    The NLC president said that the rally would be held on Feb. 9, in Lagos and Abuja simultaneously.

    He said that the rally, which was supposed to be held initially on Feb. 7, 2017, was shifted to Feb. 9.

    NAN reports that the rally had become an annual event of the organised labour to canvass for good governance and anti-corruption crusade in the country.

    “We must canvass for good governance and fight against corruption because some state governments are not doing the needful as it concerns workers.

    “The Nigeria’s Labour Movement has been contemplating on how to move against those states owing workers and pensioners.

    “This portrays a lot of danger and challenges basically because, in some of those states, they do not look at the issue of workers’ salaries, among others as a priority.

    “So, the whole essence of the rally for good governance is to see that our political elite get their priority right.

    “It is in this context that the NLC and the TUC are going to undertake a second round of campaign for good governance and the fight against corruption.

    “ We realise from the data we have  that  it is not about how much those states earn, but it is  about how transparent the process is in those states.’’

    He said that the rally was also a quest for the new minimum wage for workers in the country.

    “Basically, whether we like it or not, corruption will continue to fight back, except we the working class and others come together to defeat those forces. Nobody will help us,’’ he said.(NAN)

  • Orji denies getting pension from Abia govt

    Orji denies getting pension from Abia govt

    Former Abia State Governor Theodore Orji has denied receiving pension from the state.

    In a statement by his Media Adviser, Eddie Onuzutike, the former governor said the report was false.

    Orji said his name was included among past governors and deputies to get pensions.

    The statement reads: “Let it be known to all and sundry that T. A. Orji is not drawing any such funds from Abia State, knowing the implications of such act.

    “As a man who went through the rungs of the civil service ladder – from Administrative Officer to Permanent Secretary – he is aware of the code guiding retirement of officers and so would not violate same.

    “It is an avowed code and the journalistic maxim that when in doubt, one should not publish. This is still applicable and should be judiciously adhered to. Reporters and media houses should investigate properly before publishing.

    “In the case above, the medium is hereby advised to apologise for the huge embarrassment from the error and desist from such publications to avoid unnecessary legal actions applicable to such misleading information.”

     

  • Why FG is yet to pay accrued pension

    The federal government is unable to meet its obligation to its retirees because it cannot cash back the federal government Retirement Benefits Bonds domiciled in the Central Bank (CBN).

    The federal government owes its former workers accrued rights from January 2016 till date, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

    Accrued pension rights are what the FG owes its workers who had been in service before the commencement of the Pension Reform Act, 2004.

    All federal government workers were ‘retired’ and then reemployed to join the service and their pension funded monthly according to the Pension Reform Act, 2004.

    The money the federal government owes its workers before the commencement of the act is recognised in form of an amount acknowledged through the issuance of Federal Government Retirement Benefits Bonds.

    Upon retirement of an employee, the bonds are to be liquidated and added to the balance of the retirement savings account of an employee to get the total amount he or she is entitled to.

    To ensure that government settles backlog of accrued rights, PFAs are not allowed to give access to their retirement savings until the Federal Government releases the accrued rights component.

    This means that a retiree cannot access his or her Retirement Savings Account (RSA) through the Pension Funds Administrators without the accrued pension rights component.

    A source at the office of the Accountant General of the Federation said that due to the present economic challenges, the government was finding it difficult to cash back the bonds.

    The source said that the setback was in the liquidation of the bonds issued by the DMO and domiciled at CBN.

    “Even from the budgetary stage, what is budgeted for Pension is not enough to meet the needs even if its cash backed 100 per cent, so it’s a problem.

    “Budget Office has to make provisions for it then we at AGF can pay. But I can tell you that N7 billion was paid to PENCOM at the end of December,” the source said.

    Also, a source at PENCOM told our correspondent that a lot of retirees blamed the commission because they did not understand that the funds were not managed by the commission.

    “Whenever we get the money, we compile our list and give the names and money to the PFAs.

    “The simple truth is that it is the federal government that is delaying the payment of accrued rights of retirees.

    “Initially we were owing from October 2016, but some funds were released recently and two weeks ago we were able to pay workers that retired from November to December 2016,” the source said.

    The source revealed that the biggest challenge right now was not just having the bonds cash backed, but rather, how to calculate the accrued pension a retiree was owed.

    The source said the bonds were supposed to yield interest and boost the expected amount, yet no significant interest was reflected in the amount remitted for each retiree.

    The source said each retiree was paid exactly or a little more than what was determined to be his accrued rights as at June 2004.

    Mr. Mohammed Julde, who worked with the Ministry of Education from 1984 to 2016, asked the Federal Government to heed the cry of its former workers.

    He said it was not fair for them to suffer this after judiciously serving in the public service.

  • LASPEC pays N21.93b accrued pension in 16 months

    The Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC) has paid N21.93 billion as pension accrued rights to 5,027 retirees in the last 16 months, its Director-General, Folashade Onanuga, has said.

    She made this known at the 11th Retirement Benefit Documentation Seminar organised by the commission in Lagos.

    She reiterated Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s administration’s committment to regular funding of employees’ Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs).

    She said: “Lagos State is up to date in the remittance of contributions into employees’ RSA,  adding that the state has also not reneged in funding of retirement benefit redemption fund and pension sinking fund accounts. Pension bailout funds have also been provided to ensure consistency in payment of terminal dues.

    “We will like workers in the state to know that the commission is committed to their wellbeing and it has the commitment of the Governor, the state executive council, legislators and the Ministry of Establishments, Training and Pensions to the funding of the pension obligations.”

    Commissioner for Establishments, Training and Pensions Lagos State, Dr. Benson Akintola, said the state would sustain the height it has reached as the leading light in pension affairs.

    According to him, the state is looking at how to commence the implementation of the Pension Reform Act 2014, especially in the area of 18 per cent contributions for workers.

    The state Acting Head of Service, Folasade Adesoye, further urged workers to reciprocate government’s gesture  by being committed to their responsibilities.

  • Killing the new pension law

    Killing the new pension law

    PenCom must come up with solution to non-remittance of funds

    If we had thought that the country was rid of the virus of corporate and institutional indiscipline which marred the old pension scheme with the coming of the Contributory Pension Scheme a little over 10 years ago, latest developments in the sector would seem to suggest that the virus has merely mutated. Proof of that is the widespread report of non-remittance of deductions of workers’ pension dues by employers, both in the private and public sectors.

    By the provisions of the Pension Reform Act, 2004, employers were mandated to deduct 7.5 per cent of workers’ monthly emolument and augment with same amount to make a total of 15 per cent to be transferred to the Retirement Savings Account (RSA) with the Pension Funds Administrator (PFA) of the workers’ choice. This law was later amended and replaced with the Pension Reform Act, 2014 to reflect the trends in the economy.

    The new law hikes the contributions of the employee and employers to eight per cent and 10 per cent, respectively, putting the total contribution at 18 per cent instead of the previous 15 per cent. The expectation is that with the funds thus pooled and invested in the RSA, workers could then look forward to a blissful life in retirement. The story now is that this provision is being observed in the breach by many employers.

    To start with, only an individual unfamiliar with the pains and sufferings of the former pension scheme with its so-called defined benefits would not recoil at the prospects of a relapse into that terrible era under which employers and employees assumed that funds would be available at the workers’ point of exit  –  only to find that it was a mirage. Whereas corruption, fiscal indiscipline and an inept bureaucracy conspired to make nonsense of that old pension scheme, the fact that the scheme was technically unfunded would appear to have rendered it simply unsustainable. Nigerians would recall the regime of endless verifications, humiliation and sometimes deaths of many senior citizens on pension queues among the vestiges of that dark era.

    The new scheme had sought to remedy those defects through contributions from employers and employees alike. The idea being that the deducted funds would be invested for the future benefit of the worker. That the funds, for which at least nominal deductions have been made, are not remitted to the PFAs obviously represent a direct throwback to that old era of throwing retirees to the hounds. The development should alarm not just the workers but the various industrial unions as well.

    We understand that some of the problems are linked to the current crisis in the economy. After all, it is a notorious fact that some 27 state governments are in different states of arrears of their workers’ salaries. The private sector is probably worse, with a good number forced to shed their workforce, unable to pay severance packages to disengaged staff several months after. So, left to make a choice between salaries and pension obligations in the atmosphere of limited funds, most workers would readily settle for their wages. Of course, it is a Catch-22 situation: an uneasy trade-off between current welfare provision and future rest of mind. It is an unfortunate situation to be in.

    Much as we sympathise with employers, the point remains that the remittance is not only mandatory; a breach is actually a crime punishable by law. Oftentimes, the problem with some employers is their inclination to treat the issue of pensions as least in their pecking order of priority. A ready proof of that is the huge pension liabilities currently threatening the scheme. To allow the trend to continue would inevitably lead to the collapse of the scheme. The National Pension Commission (PenCom) should come up with a strategy to address the problem. One way to go is for it to come up with a directory on the current status of those signed on to the scheme. To the extent that such a directory would put offending employers on the spot, it would no doubt minimise incidences of default. Over all, the objective is to get the employers to clear the huge backlog.