A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, Olatunbosun Oyintiloye has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to look into the plights of contributory pensioners in the country.

Mr Oyintiloye, a member of the defunct APC Presidential Campaign Council, made the appeal while speaking with journalists on Tuesday in Osogbo.

The APC chieftain said that delayed, non-payment of pensions, inadequate funding and corruption within the pension scheme led to hardship and financial stress for pensioners.

Mr Oyintiloye, a former lawmaker, said that since 2004, when the Pensions Reform Act(PRA 2004) on the contributory pension scheme was introduced by the Federal Government, the pensioner had not been treated fairly.

According to him, many pensioners, after two to three years are unable to access their pension while some are paid 50 per cent and 25 per cent lump sum.

The APC said that it was sad that many civil servants who had served the government for 35 years were being subjected to untold hardship after retirement due to delay and poor payment.

Mr Oyintiloye, who commended Mr Tinubu for approving N758 billion bond in February to clear 16 years pension liabilities, said that more needed to be done to save pensioners from untold hardships after retirement.

He urged the President to work with the National Assembly to review the 2004 Pensions Reform Act to enable pensioners to withdraw their retirement savings immediately after exiting the public service.

Mr Oyintiloye said that such a step would enable them to cater for themselves, venture into any business of their choice rather than living on 25 per cent lump sum of their savings and the monthly peanut.

He said that the life pensioners were living after retirement due to poor pay and delay could destroy the morale of those still in service and the coming generations.

He stated, “I want to appeal to the President to look into the plights of pensioners under the contributory scheme. The 2004 Pension Act needs reviewing to enable pensioners to lead a decent life after retirement. Due to poverty and delay in payment, many retirees cannot afford a decent meal, good health care, good housing, among others after retirement. The intervention of the President will go a long way in bringing relief to retirees and hope for those who are still in active service. That is why I am pleading to the President to intervene. He has shown that he is a leader with the capacity to solve problems. His intervention will go a long way in bringing relief to these people and hope for those who are still in active service.’’

(NAN)