Non-payment of pensions, gratuities worry Abia pensioners

The Abia State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), has renewed its appeal to the government to consider the plight of its members and clear the backlog of pension arrears.

This appeal, which was made through a communiqué issued at the end of its emergency meeting in Umuahia, appeals, was jointly endorsed by the state Chairman, Comrade Udensi Chukwuma and the Secretary, Elder Onyekwere Arungwa.

The Council stated that the arrears was between four and ten months from 2014 to 2015 and called on the government to intensify effort in clearing them, as it decried a situation where retired primary school and secondary school teachers, as well as Local Government Service Staff were pension for one year and over after retirement.

The body noted that in most cases the arrears arising from such delays were not easily processed and paid to the beneficiaries. It frowned upon  non-payment of gratuities in the state for the past fifteen years (2000 to 2015) and demanded immediate commencement of payment.

Also the pensioners called on the government to settle the payment of harmonisation arrears compiled since 2004 and consider the immediate implementation of pension increases of 61/2%, 15% and 53.4% ,respectively, as approved by the Salaries and Wages Commission.