Noah Ebije, Kaduna
The 19 northern States Forum of Nigeria Union of Pensioners have bemoaned non-payment of over 20 years benefit arrears of its members in parts of the north, particularly Zamfara State.
The pensioners appealed to Zamfara State governor, Muhammad Bello Matawalle to review the arrears and ensure payment to beneficiaries. They also called on the federal government to approve minimum pension benefits for them in line with the implementation of the minimum wage to civil servants in the country. They expressed gratitude to Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai for being the first governor to implement the minimum pension of N30, 000.00 for pensioners in Kaduna State.
This was contained in an 8-paragraph communiqué read to journalists yesterday after the Forum’s extensive discussion at its meeting. The communiqué, which was read by the Chairman of the Forum, Alhaji Abdullahi Tsoho Garba, appreciated officials of Pension Transition Directorate (PTAD) for recent successful verification of pensioners across the country.
They, however, observed that some of their members in Jigawa, Kano and few other states were not captured in the verification exercise. They, therefore, called on PTAD, “to go back to the states concerned and carry out a mop-up exercise of the affected pensioners soonest and resume their pension payment accordingly.”