Okorocha blames govt’s delay in payment of pensioners to economic downfall

Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has attributed government’s delay to pay pensioners their accumulated pensions to the economic situation in the country occasioned by the mismanagement of the country’s resources over the years He expressed regret that the situation had adversely affected the finances of the states which called for stringent measures to be […]

Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has attributed government’s delay to pay pensioners their accumulated pensions to the economic situation in the country occasioned by the mismanagement of the country’s resources over the years
He expressed regret that the situation had adversely affected the finances of the states which called for stringent measures to be taken in the payment of salaries and pensions.
Okorocha, reacting to the recent peaceful protest by pensioners in the state over unpaid pensions and gratuity,  said the development compelled the government to find out why between 2011 and now, the number of pensioners in the state had snowballed by 500 percent, and the amount involved increased from millions to billions of naira.
He said: “Government equally embarked on verification and preliminary findings which showed that a cartel had used the opportunity offered to them by the change of government in 2011 to inflate unpatriotically the number of pensioners in the state to a level that is unbelievable. And that is what the government has been assiduously working to rectify.”
The governor assured that once the government succeeds in separating the fake pensioners from the genuine ones which would take some weeks,the genuine ones would be paid their pensions.
While regretting the delay, the governor appealed to the pensioners in the state for their understanding, bearing in mind that he meant well for them since 2011 when he became governor.
Okorocha also expressed worry with the pensioners on their failure to find out the reason for the delay in the payment of their pensions since such situation had not arisen before.
He said: “The pensioners in the state do not need to be told that I love them greatly and would   have loved to pay them all the arrears outrightly given the option since I have paid them religiously since 2011. Until now and I had expected the pensioners to ask question and find out the reason for the delay this time.”