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The Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), Abia State chapter has alleged that the documents said to have been signed by them forfeiting their gratuities and 45 months pensions were written by aides to Governor Alex Otti and not by them.
This is even as they acknowledged that the governor cleared pension arrears from June 2023 to March 2024, which they said was accumulated under the present administration.
Addressing journalists on Thursday in Umuahia, the NUP Abia chapter, led by its clChairman, Chukwuemeka Irondi and Uma Kalu, Secretary, said that Governor Alex Otti’s “claims to have cleared ten years of pensions arrears has no basis in the union’s (NUP) records”.
The pensioners called for a serious review of the “so-called” Memorandum of Agreement particularly as it concerns article 7 (a) and (b) of the MOA as allegedly written by agents of the state government.
They suggested it would be a dis-service and hypocrisy to use NUP executive and pensioners as scape goat and sacrificial lamb “to attract attract national and international grants for selfish reasons”.
According to the NUP chairman, aides to the Abia State governor tricked the executives of the union into submitting the letter head of the union which was allegedly used by the aides in writing the purported Memorandum of Agreement.
On why it took them a long time to speak, the NUP executives said that since they were allegedly coerced to sign the agreement, their lawyer needed to study the controversial document before advising them on the next line of action.
They further alleged that Abia State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Ikechuckwu Uwanna, was directed by the governor to query and intimidate the pensioners to submit to the state government’s position.
“My people are still crying, what is due them has not been paid. We are not satisfied, nobody is happy.
“We never discussed gratuities at any point let alone talking about waiving of any enrollments of pensions including gratuities.
“Nobody has the authority of imposing the waiving of gratuities on Abia pensioners for any reason,” Irondi said.
Some children of senior citizens who are expecting their parents to be paid their gratuities since they retired from Cross River State civil service 12 years ago have appealed that the payments should not be publicised.
They have expressed serious fears that publicity of the payment could alert kidnappers and armed robbers to visit their parents and dispossess them of the funds, kidnap or even kill them.
Kidnappings in the state have not completely abated despite stringent security measures by Governor Bassey Otu’s government.
Over a month ago, kidnappers abducted a heavily pregnant woman in Eseku community of Creek town, Odukpani LGA in place of the husband, a businessman, and demanded N50 million.
Members of the community have cried out that they cannot raise such hefty sum.
Two days ago the woman reportedly delivered her baby in their den.
On Sunday, when the pastor of her church and one relative went to deliver part of the ransom, so that she could be released, the kidnappers collected the money and also grabbed the emissaries.
Reacting to the payments, one of the grand children of the Cross River State civil service retirees, Elvis Idam, in a commentary on Facebook, said:
“But some things are better kept unannounced, the level of kidnappings and the society we live in will expose our senior citizens to these social vices and criminals.”
Another, a step son of Madam Beatrice Edem, now 72 years old, Eti-Eyen Anselem, commended the governor for doing what his predecessors refused to do since 2013 by moving to pay the outstanding gratuities.
But he appealed that government should step up security measures for senior citizens who are now receiving their gratuities after about 12 years.
“The last government didn’t pay gratuities even though they had much money to flaunt. Government stopped payment of gratuities in 2013, and my step mum retired that same year without her gratuity.”
Reacting to fears of kidnapping of the senior citizens, a former chairman of Inter-Party Advisory Council, IPAC, Anthony Bissong Attah, said, “Social vices have been going on even without payment of gratuity to our senior citizens. Civil servants have been receiving their salaries and all kidnappers are fully aware of it.”
The opposition politician, Attah, said the singular action by Otu has demonstrated that he is a friend of the vulnerable and a promise keeper.
“I got calls from some pensioners who retired over ten years ago expressing how glad they are to receive their gratuity a decade later while some have died without getting their deserved entitlement.”
The Federal Government is set to spend N3tn on the new minimum wage and the payment of pensions and gratuities, Saturday PUNCH has learnt.
The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, disclosed this on Friday during a meeting with the Senate Committee on Appropriations, chaired by Olamilekan Adeola.
The minister presented the general principles of the newly amended 2024 budget to the committee at the meeting.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu had, after a meeting with the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress on Thursday, approved a new minimum wage of N70,000 for Nigerian workers. The president also pledged to review the national minimum wage law every three years.
The National Assembly, in both chambers, had on Wednesday passed for first and second readings an amendment of N6.2tn to the 2024 budget, increasing the budget size to N33.7tn.
In a letter to the Senate, read in plenary by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, Tinubu sought the withdrawal of N3.2tn from the Consolidated Revenue Fund for capital expenditure. Additionally, he requested another N3tn for additional recurrent expenditure for the year ending on December 31, 2024.
For expeditious consideration, the Senate gave the requests presented as executive bills, first and second readings, and mandated its committees on Appropriations and Finance to inject more legislative inputs and report back within a week. In his lead debate on the Appropriation Amendment Bill, the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, said the amendment sought to authorise the issuance of N3.2tn for capital expenditure and N3tn for recurrent expenditure from the consolidated fund. He explained that this would help fund capital infrastructure development, education, healthcare access, and public welfare initiatives.
Senator Adamu Aliero supported the bills, citing the need to fund the expected minimum wage for workers. Senator Adams Oshiomhole emphasised the necessity of funding the personnel costs arising from the minimum wage adjustment. He stressed that the increase in personnel expenditure must be legally backed to prevent financial shortfalls.
During the Friday meeting with the Senate Committee on Appropriations, the minister noted that the new budget additions would not be funded by loans but by an already reserved profit.
Bagudu explained that priorities were given to projects that would open up roads for investments and emergencies, while other road projects would be addressed in subsequent batches. He highlighted the country’s historical underinvestment in infrastructure as a root cause of recent problems and commended President Tinubu for addressing the infrastructure deficit.
Bagudu assured that the Federal Executive Council would continue to approve funding for other road projects as funds become available. He provided a sectoral overview of the N3.2tn for the Renewed Hope Infrastructure Projects and the N3tn increase in the recurrent component of the budget.
Senator Adeola affirmed the government’s capacity to finance the 2024 budget and requested a detailed breakdown of the N6.2tn approval.
This breakdown, to be submitted next week, will be debated by both chambers of the National Assembly. Senate Spokesperson, Senator Yemi Adaramodu, confirmed that ministries, departments, and agencies would defend their budget allocations before the relevant Senate committees.
The recurrent budget of N3tn will fund the minimum wage, pensions, and gratuities, while the capital component of N3.2tn will augment existing road projects on state and federal routes, including coastal roads, the Sokoto-Badagry road, railway construction, and dam irrigation.
Acceptance of N70,000 minimum wage act of solidarity — NLC
The Nigeria Labour Congress on Friday night stated that its acceptance of the N70,000 minimum wage proposed by Tinubu was an act of solidarity.
The congress made this known in a statement released at the end of its National Executive Council meeting. The statement, which was signed by the National President of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, affirmed that the NLC would continue to defend the rights of Nigerian workers at all times.
The statement read, “NEC-in-session concluded that this decision, though challenging and far from our initial demand, was made in the spirit of solidarity and sacrifice for the Nigerian masses to avert a threatened further hike in the price of petrol, which would inflict more hardship on the already suffering masses.
“Once again, NEC-in-session restates the commitment of the NLC to continue standing resolutely in its mission to defend and advance the rights of Nigerian workers and the Nigerian people at all times.
“It therefore calls on all Nigerians to unite in this cause and to hold our leaders accountable to the same standards of sacrifice and service.”
N70,000 can’t sustain workers in Lagos, says labour
Also, the Lagos State Chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress has urged the state government to consider the peculiarities of the state when the new N70,000 minimum wage comes into effect.
The state chairman of the NLC, Mrs Funmi Sessi, told the News Agency of Nigeria on Friday in Lagos that the N70,000 minimum wage approved by President Bola Tinubu could not sustain workers in the state.
“We, in Lagos State, still need to negotiate further with the government on issues such as rent, transportation and feeding. The government needs to look critically at our wage and add the ‘Lagos factor’.
“We know that if Ogun, Oyo, Edo, and Ekiti are paying the N70,000 stipulated by law, for Lagos, Kano, Rivers, and Abuja, there will always be that special factor for their allowances.
“So, we use this medium to appeal to our loving and good Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who is always willing to appreciate the good works of workers and alleviate their sufferings.
“We want to tell the governor that the ‘Lagos factor’ should be considered for the workers in the state. N70,000 is not sustainable for workers residing in the state.
“We will, however, continue to engage and dialogue until what we feel will be best for the workers is achieved,” she said.
Additional reporting by Deborah Tolu-Kolawole