The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, on Tuesday pledged the 10th Assembly’s support for the National Senior Citizens Centre (NSCC) in the bid to achieve its mandate.
Hon. Abbas, who gave the assurance during an interactive session with NSCC management in Abuja, however, expressed grave displeasure over the paltry sum of N250 million in the annual budget approved for the institution on a yearly basis.
While assuring that the House would work on increasing the agency’s annual budget, Hon. Abbas said, “I am indeed touched by the remarks from the DG concerning the mandate of her agency, which many members did not know existed. I am deeply depressed that you have been operating with the sum of 250m to cover a national mandate.”
Speaker Abbas also said the House would work with the Committee on Disability Matters, chaired by Hon. Bashiru Dawodu, to ensure that the agency has at least one operational office in each of the six geopolitical zones of the country.
The Speaker equally tasked the chairman of the committee to work with the agency to come up with a bill that would provide concessions to senior citizens in the area of healthcare, transportation, etcetera.
“I want to commend you for all that you have been doing and assure you that you have partners in us. We are ready to partner with you. I wish to assure you that going forward, we will sit with the chairman and the Appropriations Committee to see what we can do to improve your budget in 2025.
“It is noteworthy to say that it is not an easy thing; the federal government is really stretched on the issue of budget because the revenue is not growing in the manner in which we expect. So, appropriating more money to agencies becomes critical.
“But even at that, your agency is one out of so many that deserves special attention. We will do the best we can to see how we can appropriate more funds for your agency,” he said.
Expressing concern regarding the country’s pension scheme, the Speaker assured the NSCC of his readiness to work with the centre to improve the system.
“I can’t imagine a civil servant working for 35 years or after attaining 60 years, only to come back home and be receiving 10,000, 15,000, 20,000, or 30,000 for monthly upkeep as a pension. It is so depressing and so disappointing, and I believe both of us can do so much in this area.
“The pension system in Nigeria is simply not working to support the retirees. I believe we can collaborate and partner to see how we can improve the pension scheme. It is one big way of ensuring that your agency’s mandate is achieved.
“We are on the same page on the issue of health care. The elders (senior citizens) need special attention. The chair and the DG, please put heads together to come up with a bill that will give concessions on health, transportation, and other areas to the elderly.
“The issue of offices across the country, it’s something we should look at in the coming budget. I think you should work out a submission for us to have at least six offices in the six geopolitical zones.”
Earlier, the Director-General of the NSCC, Dr Emem Omokaro, said the visit was to intimate the Speaker of the centre’s operations and the challenges it has been facing despite the overwhelming mandate that it has.
She sought the Speaker’s understanding for improved budgetary provision from the current 250m annually, which she said was not enough for the agency to work with.
Dr Omolaro also requested the Speaker to look into the issue of offices for the agency across the country to meet the mandate of catering to more senior citizens.
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