Review our pensions upwards, pensioners plead with governors, governors-elect

Pensioners in the North-Eastern part of the country have appealed to re-elected and newly elected Governors in the region to as a matter of necessity review upwards pensions being paid to retired civil servants as well as settle all outstanding gratuities owed them by their respective states when they are sworn in with a view to improving the plight of the retirees.

North-East Zonal National Vice President of Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), Alhaji Muhammadu Inuwa Ahmad made the appeal in a press statement issued to Journalists On Sunday in Bauchi.

He said that the appeal was necessary considering the situation pensioners in the region found themselves where state governments pay them token amount as pensions while others do not pay regularly.

According to him, there are provisions in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) that necessitate upward review of pension to each pensioner lamenting however that some states do not increase the money for years.

“Section 173(3) and section 210(3) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) stipulate that “pension must be reviewed every five years or together with any increase in workers’ wages. But unfortunately, many states do not review pensions thereby making retirees living in misery despite the selfless service they rendered the nation when they were younger,” he lamented.

While buttressing his points further, Inuwa Ahmad pointed out that up-to-now the minimum pensions in Adamawa State is N4, 500, same in Borno and Taraba states while Gombe and Bauchi states pay N9, 000 and N12, 719 respectively.

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He stated further that: “As the most senior citizens, pensioners are supposed to be concurrently determined and importantly addressed, almost all of the northeastern states except Yobe are artificially injected with poorly syndrome, therefore, it is in the interest of the northeastern states’ pensioners I wish to appeal for the following.”

He added that: “Immediate implementation of the retired pensioner in to the monthly pension payroll, continuous upward review of pension to the deserved pensioners every five (5) years or together with any increase in workers’ salary, whichever comes earlier as stipulated by section 173(3) and section 210(3) of the 1999 constitution (as amended).

“We also demand the clearing of pensioners’ emoluments/gratuities instantaneously, Implementation of N30,000 as minimum pension, as both pensioners and workers have equal needs and expenditures and go to the same market for shopping,” he pleaded with Governors-elect.