By Chukwuemeke Iwelunmo
Pensioners in the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) have accused the management of the agency of “fraudulently” diverting about N1.5 billion pension fund in the organisation.
The pensioners under the auspices of Airspace Management Pensioners Association of Nigeria (AMPAN), an affiliate of the Federal Parastatals and Private Sector Pensioners Association of Nigeria (FEPPAN) in an interview with our correspondent over the weekend alleged that the pension fraud dated back to 2003.
Engr. Kester Omotayo, the Chairman, AMPAN in an exclusive interview with Daily Independent at the delegate conference by the association held at the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos, over the weekend, purported that the pensioners were being shortchanged monthly by the management.
According to him, the short payment of the pensioners had lingered for over 10 years, maintaining that this was either due to ignorance, inefficiency or corruption in the system.
Omotayo explained that the short payment of the pensioners started with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) returnee pensioners to NAMA in 2005, stressing that the pension increase effective from 2003 was unimplemented by the agency’s management.
He explained that the Human Resources Department of NAMA had been duly notified of the issue, but declined to address the imbalance in the system, rather, he alleged that the department took offence and decided to delay actions on its several submissions on the issue since 2017.
Omotayo also accused the agency of operating two pension structures, perhaps to deliberately cover up or attempt to cover some sharp practices in the pension division of the Human Resources Department, stressing that efforts to look into the books of NAMA as it concerns pension were snubbed.
He added: “The pension indebtedness has accumulated to over N1 billion. We have submitted a fool-proof tabulated analysis to NAMA management for well over a year, but, as usual, there was no positive action taken.
Our request for dialogue on the issue has also been rebuffed. “It is not unlikely that NAMA operates on two pension structures may be to deliberately cover or attempt to cover some sharp practices in the pension division of the Human Resources Department.
This we suspect when in 2017, we requested them for the structure with which our pensions were being paid. “We were not only denied but were told that it was a classified document.
This has been reported to NAMA Pension Board of Trustees for well-over two years.
The same board accountant has also failed to render a statement of account to the present board since its inception.
The previous board accountant rendered account regularly on every quarterly meeting.” Besides, Comrade Olayinka Abioye, another retiree of NAMA corroborated the position of Omotayo in an interview with our correspondent.
According to Abioye, an investigation carried out by the pensioners indicated that they are short paid by the management to the tune N1.5 billion since 2003.
“As I speak to you today, we have done a comparative analysis of what our counterparts in FAAN are earning and what we ought to be earning if our pensions are correctly computed, is about N1.5 billion between 2003 and now.
The past management pleaded with the unions that they could not afford to pay what they owed and promised to give us some percentage of the short payment and said when the fortune of NAMA improved, they will make up the difference, but today, they have been playing pranks.
“I was retired in FAAN in 1996 and in 2003 or so, those of us who were professionals were transferred to NAMA.
And there were some realignment in salary structure and the law says that when salaries and allowances are reviewed, pensions must be correspondingly reviewed, but NAMA never acceded to that.
“As I speak to you today, somebody who retired on the same level with me, the same number of years, is earning more than N11,000 monthly than me. This has affected those of us who were moved from FAAN to NAMA.
All the increases that the government has announced or the increment in their salaries and allowances in the last 15 years, pensioners have merely benefitted, NAMA didn’t follow the law.”
He alleged that pension fund in NAMA had been grossly mismanaged and accused the management of evading meetings with the unions.
Abioye emphasised that Capt. Fola Akinkuotu, the Managing Director, NAMA was a handicap in the entire arrangement, describing him as an “outsider” in the agency.
He said that no fewer than 500 NAMA retirees were affected by the lopsidedness in the system.
“Akinkuotu is an outsider in NAMA. He came, he has blended with the system, he loves the unions, but unfortunately, Akinkuotu is a handicap.
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He is a handicap to such an extent that the directorate of Human Resources and Admin has captured him.
He is the Managing Director, but he’s not in charge. People in HR are in charge of running NAMA and that is why NAMA is in a problem”, he said.
In a swift response to the allegation, the managing director of NAMA, Capt Fola Akinkuotu said it was all lies adding that when he came on board, he tried to look into harmonizing salaries of all workers following which a committee was set up.
Akinkuotu said they were getting their pension and were being paid regularly and that NAMA has not diverted any pension money describing it as unfair to him. He said they wrote to management which the agency promised to look into.
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