Pensioners call for creation of Pension ministry

The National President of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), Dr. A.O Afolayan has   called on the Federal Government to create a full-fledged ministry of Pension and Senior Citizens Affair in the manner Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development was created. Speaking at the occasion of the 2015 National Pensioners day held Friday in […]

The National President of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), Dr. A.O Afolayan has   called on the Federal Government to create a full-fledged ministry of Pension and Senior Citizens Affair in the manner Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development was created.
Speaking at the occasion of the 2015 National Pensioners day held Friday in Abuja, Afolayan said that the ministry if created will cater adequately for the welfare of pensioners, old people and senior citizens throughout Nigeria as it is practised in developed countries of the world.
He also called for the retention and strengthening of National Pension Commission (PENCOM) and the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) under the proposed ministry.
Afolayan while lamenting the pathetic pension being paid to some pensioners which is as low as 5000 naira monthly called on the government at all levels to pay  pensioners what is due to them.  
“Another problem compounding our members agonizing situation which we would like to plead with the Buhari administration to look into passionately is the federal government’s failure to pay regularly their 5 percent counterpart fund into the local pension fund which was started as prescribed by government but stopped sometimes ago without any just cause whatsoever. This stoppage has been adversely affecting regular payment of monthly pensions to the local government pensioners and primary school pensioners being paid from this fund. We are pleading with the federal government to direct for strict compliance with this counterpart funding by the three tiers of government,” he said.