Residents of Nasarawa and Kogi advocated the reform of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) on Monday, saying it has not met the pensioners’ expectations.

Some pensioners who spoke to journalists in Lokoja, Kogi State capital,  said they were not impressed with how some pension administrators treated them.

Florence Aina, who retired from Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, called on government at all levels to always remember pensioners as much as they remember those still in service.

“I expect the government to put emphasis on pensioners, such that when other sectors get a pay increase, they should also have,” said Ms Aina. “This is because what affects serving civil servants affects them too because they all buy from the same market.”

A retired educationist, Ladun Gbadebo, who worked in the state ministry of education, said there was a need to scrutinise pension staffers following alleged shady activities in the pension administrators’ offices.

She highlighted major problems with the pension scheme, such as delays in payment of pensions and gratuities to deserving retirees, lack of accountability, and poor management.

Dare Olukaiyeja, a retired director in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, said his experience after retirement was unfortunate, given how pension administrators handled his monthly pension.

Mr Olukaiyeja said he got his gratuity and pension almost two years after retirement. Although, he admitted that his monthly pension was being paid regularly.

“The CPS should be reformed to allow contributors to take away their Retired Saving Account (RSA) balance 100 per cent,” Mr Olukaiyeja said.

Kola Adeyemi, a retired deputy director at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said he retired in October 2021 and had a fair experience with the CPS. He said he got his benefits after 14 months of retirement due to a mistake he made in the form.

“Again, I have been getting my monthly pension regularly, particularly on the 20th of every month from my PFA. CPS is a close-ended arrangement; this should be looked into.

“All the same, there is a need for review to know exactly what CPS is set out to achieve and not only to take off the burden of paying monthly pensions to retirees from FG,” he said.

Oladipo Agaja, who retired from the Kogi Local Government Service on Grade Level 14, said he only got N120,000 as part of his gratuity since he retired in 2010.

He said, “I cannot remember the amount I am entitled to, but as a retired Head of the Department of Works, I took home that amount at my retirement as salary.

“I now collect a monthly pension of N39,000. Thanks to this present administration, which came to upgrade the monthly payment because as at last year, I was earning between N9,000 and N18,000 as pension.

In Nasarawa State, retirees appealed to the state government for an upward review of their pension entitlements.

According to the senior citizens, they have yet to benefit from three consecutive national minimum wage increments in Nasarawa State.

Samuel Tabe, a pensioner, told journalists that pensioners in Nasarawa State were going through tough times as some receive as low as N5,000 as pension.

“This is the third national minimum wage they are working on, and none was added to the pensioners in Nasarawa state.

Mr Tabe, who retired in 2013, said he started receiving his pension payment immediately after he exited from the service.

Matthew Tukura, a new retiree, urged the agencies responsible for the payment of retirees’ benefits to make provision for their accumulated entitlements at once rather than paying in piecemeal.

“Even if the government cannot pay retirees their entitlements at once half of it should be paid. If such sum is paid at once they can go into business like poultry, fish and livestock farming,’’ he said.

Mr Tukura raised concern over the delayed payment of gratuity in the state.

“So, government and other agencies responsible for pension matters should review the pension so that our senior citizens can enjoy their lives after retirement,” he said.

Peter Ahemba, Senior Special Assistant on Public Affairs to Governor Abdullahi Sule, assured that the government would review the payment of pension upward to enable pensioners to enjoy increments accrued from the new minimum wage.

“The government has plans to review the pension upward because of the new national minimum wage; pensioners should be patient with the government,” he said. 

(NAN)