NUP demands N40,000 minimum pension

FCT seeks removal of salary disparity between core ministry and agencies workers.

As the tripartite committee on National Minimum Wage held public hearing across the six geo-political zones of the country, the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) has demanded N40,000 monthly minimum pension for pensioners across the country.

The NUP made its demand also as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) called for the removal of salary disparity between civil servants in the core government ministries and their counterparts working at the government agencies and parastatals.

Besides, the FCT Minister, Mallam Muhammadu Musa Bello, asked for special allowance for workers in Abuja compare to all other states of the federation because of high cost of living within the FCT.

In a memorandum presented to the National Minimum Wage Committee, at the public hearing held in Abuja, the NUP Deputy National President, Alhaji Musa Aliyu said the agitation and request for minimum pension alongside minimum wage has been going on since the inception of the union in 1978.

This, according to him, is to correct the ugly situation whereby some pensioners particularly at state level, earn as low as N2,000 per month.

He pointed out that there has never been any genuine attempt by government to determine a minimum pension for pensioners.

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Alhaji Aliyu said “On the strength of the above argument and submission, the entire Nigerian pensioners wish to request the committee on the National Minimum Wage Review to use its mandate to discuss and make recommendation to the Federal Government on the need for a minimum pension of N40,000 per month alongside the proposed N65,000 minimum wage for workers.”

“This is the only means by which the various low pensions being paid by federal and state governments can be addressed and corrected to have positive impact on the lives of the pensioners.

In his presentation, the FCT Minister, who was represented by the Director, Human Resource Management, Hajia Amina Abubakar, said “There is the need for the committee to consider recommending the implementation of a salary structure relativity among all federal government establishment.

“A situation where some government parastatals operate enhanced salary structure and allowances for its workforce, while others especially core ministries operate regular salary structure is to say the least somehow demoralising. Investigation to this effect indicates that junior officers in some of these juicy parastatals earn more than directors in the core ministries and department.

“While not canvassing for a down ward review of this salary and allowances of these categories of workers, considerable review and introduction of some allowances should be contemplated to mitigate this disparity.”

Also, the minister stressed the need to take into account the peculiar nature of the FCT and the high cost of living, housing, transportation  among others.

“We are all agreed that the current salary structure which begin with the minimum wage of N18,000 fall short of what is required to guarantee a minimum living standard in our economy today. Since it came into force in 2011, series of economic forces including inflation have eroded its purchasing power.

“On a closer look, this only amount to N600 per day and indeed less than $2 per day. It clearly puts the earning power of the Nigerian worker even below the poverty bracket defined by the international human development institutions.”