From Joseph Adahnu, Yola
The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) in Adamawa state, has appealed to Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, to review their monthly pension from N4000 for the last 23 years, to at least N40,000.
Decrying their plight as “unbearable and dehumanising” after years of loyal service to the state.
The Chairman of the Union, Comrade Mohammed Sali, and also chairman of the Forum of Pensioners for 19 Northern States and Abuja, made the appeal in his office, while speaking to journalists in Yola, the state capital on Tuesday.
Aa Adamawa State government is set to fulfill its eight months pledge, Comrade Sali, express optimism that Gov. Fintiri will act and the issue would soon be in the past.
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He lauded the governor for consistently paying retirees their monthly pensions since assuming office, as well as releasing N8 billion to offset outstanding gratuities of state and local government workers. “The Governor’s intervention is unprecedented compared to past administrations,” he described.
“We are hopeful that the governor will also review the minimum pension from N4,000 to over N40,000. This will go a long way in alleviating the hardship faced by our members,” he said.
Sali recalled that before Fintiri’s reforms, Local Government retirees often waited between five and nine years before receiving their pensions. But now the situation has since improved, with new retirees now placed on the pension payroll a month after retirement.
He said, “I want to commend the Governor for directing that the union’s monthly dues be remitted promptly into its account,” saying such gestures have strengthened the organization.
”I also call on pensioners to remain patient, assuring them that the governor’s promises would soon translate into tangible relief. If previous Governors had done what Governor Fintiri, is doing now, there would have been no backlog of gratuities or complaints about unpaid benefits”.
He reiterated that the current N4,000 minimum monthly pension is grossly not in tune with changing time and urged authorities to implement an upward review without delay. He maintained that retirees, who dedicated their lives to public service, deserve a dignified livelihood in retirement.
