The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) disclosed that some retirees in the country are receiving as little as N500- N3500 per month as their pension.
The stark reality highlights the financial struggles faced by those who have dedicated their working lives to public service.
Alhassan Musa, the NUP Secretary for Kaduna State, highlighted the dire situation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
Musa expressed deep concern over the precarious circumstances many pensioners find themselves in.
“These individuals sacrificed their lives and service for the nation, yet they are now left to survive on paltry sums,” he lamented.
Musa emphasized that pensioners in the Southern and oil-producing states are particularly affected, despite these regions benefiting from substantial federal allocations.
In contrast, he mentioned that retirees in certain Northern states and the Federal Capital Territory fare slightly better, with monthly pensions ranging from N3,500 to N18,000.
In Kaduna State, however, Musa pointed out that pensioners receive a minimum of N30,000 monthly, thanks to a policy implemented in 2020 by the administration of former Governor Nasir El-Rufa’i.
He urged the current administration under Governor Uba Sani to take the lead in implementing a new minimum pension of N70,000, in line with the anticipated national minimum wage.
Musa also called for a 50 percent increase in the minimum pension across the board, arguing that this is necessary to address the current economic realities in the country. He expressed hope that the Federal Government would ensure that no pensioner receives less than N70,000 per month, aligning pension benefits with the new minimum wage for workers.
The NUP secretary further shed light on the challenges faced by those who retired under the contributory pension scheme, many of whom have yet to receive their benefits years after retirement.
Musa attributed this issue to the failure of various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to remit monthly contributions to individual pension accounts, rather than any fault of the Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) or the Pension Commission (PENCOM).
He stressed that retirees should begin receiving their pensions within three months of retirement, along with their lump sum payments, to avoid the hardships currently being experienced by many former workers.
NAN