The Executive Secretary of the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate, (PTAD), Sharon Ikeazor, says the thorough clean up conducted in pensions operations by her directorate has succeeded in saving Nigeria about N4.9 billion naira annually.
In addition, the directorate has been able to verify and recapture previously excluded fifty thousand civil service pensioners and offset a 33% backlog pension increament arrears of between 12 to 42 months for several ministries and parastatals.
The PTAD boss said the directorate has recently added about 15, 162 pensioners from its exercise with Nigeria-reinsurance, NICON insurance, Delta steel company, NITEL/MTEL, Nigeria Defense Academy, federal housing authority and the New Nigerian Newspapers, with a monthly liability of about N840 million naira.
Sharon Ikeazor made the remarks over the weekend at the PTAD Stakeholders Forum in Yola, Adamawa state.
Ikeazor said she had promised pensioners to engage them regularly and this is the first time such meeting would be held in the northeastern part of Nigeria.
The pension administrator said it is now her operational policy to ensure that pensioners in the country are well treated with dignity and continually served with empathy and respect.
Detailing the success of PTAD, she said, it has verified over 496 War Affected Police Officers who served in the Nigerian civil war between 1967 to 1970 and paid over N917.7 million to offset their entitlements.
She explained that, “In September, 2016, PTAD, completed the full payment of the outstanding 33% arrears to Customs, Immigration and Prison Service Pensions by paying N6.5 billion (42 months).
“In August, 2018, PTAD completed the full payment of the outstanding 33% arrears to police Pensioners by paying N5.8 billion (42 months arrears).”
“In November 2018, PTAD paid twenty four months (Out of 42) of the outstanding 33% arrears to Parastatals pensioners totalling about N13.8 billion naira,” she submitted.
She added that PTAD, “paid 36 months (out of 42) of the outstanding 33% arrears of civil service Pensioners totalling N18.1 billion naira.”
The PTAD boss explained that her directorate has made it a priority to ensure that pension payments preceed salary payments and that the directorate is working hard to ensure pensioners in the country obtain a National Health Insurance Service benefits for efficient health care delivery for pensioners.
The Sun gathered that the directorate is working hard to ensure the complete payment of 33% arrears for all pensioners and complete verification of eligible Pensioners in the country.
Earlier on, the Adamawa state governor, Muhammed Umaru Jibrilla Bindow had commission PTAD zonal office in Yola, Adamawa state.
