My kind of Governor( He cares for his people) Changing Fortunes of Kaduna Pensioners For nearly a decade, pensioners in Kaduna State have subsisted in penury because their entitlements were being owed them. John Shiklam writes that with the recent payment by the government, they can smile againTheir faces were gleaming with bright smiles over the good news from the state government. Many of them were looking hungry, haggard and poorly dressed while others were still looked their best.The story of retired civil servants across the states of the federation is a familiar one. Non - payment of entitlements or delay in the payment of their pension and gratuities had been their lot.Retirement, which ordinarily should be embraced with joy, has become a source of sorrow, frustration, panic and agony, replete with stories of fraud, embezzlement, illegal lodgements of funds and illegal deductions for ghost pensioners.Since 2005, pensioners in Kaduna State have not being paid and life had become extremely difficult for many of them.Quite a number of them were said to have died while waiting for their pensions and other entitlements.It was therefore a big relief when the Kaduna State government decided to settle the backlog of all pensions and gratuities it inherited from previous the administrations for the past seven years.The conference hall of the Hassan Katsina House (State House), Kawo, venue for the distribution of the cheques was filled to the brim as the anxious pensioners from across the state stormed the place.Many of them were eager to tell the pathetic story of how they had manage to cope with excruciating hardship they had been through all these past seven years.A widow, Mrs. Dorcas Peter (not real name), relived her experience to THISDAY.She said: “My husband died five years after he was retired without pension and gratuity and the family has been living a life of frustration and hopelessness since he died, because we couldn’t access his entitlements”.Narrating the circumstances that led to her husband’s demise in 2012, the 45-year-old petty trader and mother- of- four recalled that her husband was looking forward to the payment of his entitlements after his retirement in 2008 to enjoy life in retirement, but nothing came his way before he died.“It got to a point that he could not meet his family obligations and for that reason, he became hypertensive and he later developed stroke. I spent the little money from my petty trading on his medication; the children had to withdraw from school because we couldn’t afford the school fees.“These contributed a lot to the death of my husband. We thank God for touching the heart of this governor for paying all the outstanding areas. This is a great lifeline to us and we will use it wisely” she stated.She stated further that the payment of the backlog of the pension will give the pensioners a new direction and hope.“We have been praying for the payment of the pension for a long time and God has answered our prayers. This payment has given us a break through, it has uplifted us, it has given us hope, and I am going to use it judiciously by investing it,” she added.Also lamenting his condition, Mohammed Lawal said life after retirement had been the most trying period of his life because of lack of payment of his entitlements and pension.“I was employed by the state government when I was still very young, I retired in 2007 and since, I have not been paid my gratuity and pension.“I suffered so much. In the midst of that, I lost my daughter who was seriously ill and we had to rush her to the hospital. We couldn’t raise money for the treatment so she died. It is my sincere hope that the state government, after settling the arrears, will start to treat us as human beings by paying our pension as at when due,” he said.According to him, the payment of arrears of pension is a lifeline, stressing that many people had given up that they will ever be paid.He said that the payment was coming at the right time as it will enable him plan his life well to avoid the hardship he went through in the past 10 years.Another pensioner Godwin Kaza said since his retirement about seven years ago his friends and relations have been the ones helping him.He added that he was waiting for the payment of his entitlements to start a poultry business, “but since I left government work, they refused to pay me my entitlements.“They just made our lives miserable. Even when I was told that the governor has approved the payment of our arrears, I didn’t believe it. I am happy that it is now a reality and I commend the governor for his large heart.”He added that the most embarrassing moment of his life was when he was ejected by his landlord following his inability to pay his rent.He commended Governor Mukhtar Yero for paying the arrears of pension, pointing out that any government that is responsible must treat its retirees with dignity.Several of those who spoke to THISDAY said it got to a point that life was not worth living again as a result of frustration and hunger and their inability to meet their basic needs.They regretted that those who spent their productive years working for government were not being taken care of in retirement as a result of which many of them were dying.They noted that retirement, which ordinarily should be embraced with joy, has become a source of sorrow, frustration, panic and agony, adding that part of the reasons why there is corruption in the civil service is because of the fear of the unknown in retirement.Normally, when a worker has a pension programme in place, his retirement should actually be a time of rest, when he should be earning constant income. Unfortunately, the reverse is the case for many Nigerian pensioners.Governor Yero was said to have been disturbed over the non-payment of pension to workers in the past seven years, hence the decision to clear the backlog.Yero disclosed during the distribution of cheques to the retirees that so far a total of N6.7 billion had been spent on the settlement of backlog of pensions and gratuity to retired and next of kin of deceased civil servants in the state.The governor disclosed further that since assumption of office about 20 months ago, his administration has paid retirement benefits to 12,484 retirees and next-of-kin of deceased staff.The governor added that some of the retiree were being owed since 2005, stressing that the state government has successfully cleared all pension arrears owed retirees and would soon start settling all gratuities which stand at N1.4 billion.“We will soon settle all outstanding gratuities which amount to about N1.4 billion. I want to assure you that the fund for the payment of batches 5- 8 is ready and very soon all documentation will be completed,” said Yero.He disclosed further that the entitlements of some workers who were dismissed during the military era had equally been settled. He explained that the dismissals were later committed to termination of appointment and the state government had to pay for their entitlements.“While we are striving to settle all pensions and gratuity, government has also provided for payment of pension arrears of some civil servants who were dismissed from service during the military era.“The dismissal of some of the staff was later committed to termination of appointment and this administration has paid a total sum of N27. 4 million as arrears.“In addition to this, we have made payment of N73 million as promotion and salary increment arrears of primary and secondary school teachers in the state for the period between 2010 and 2011.“We have also paid the 2014 increment. It is pertinent to inform you that teachers’ promotion in Kaduna State from 2006 was only on paper, it was never backed by the required financial benefit until now,” the governor said.The leadership of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP) in the state has commended the governor for giving retirees a new lease of life and hope.The Chairman of NUP, Alhaji Abdu Kwarbai in a speech during the presentation of cheques to his members decried a situation whereby retired workers are left to suffer untold hardships after spending useful part of their life in service.He commended the governor for clearing the backlog of pension which according to him will go a long way in putting retirees back on track.Kwarbai said many of his members had died waiting for their pension while others had been impoverished following the non-payment of the pension.He described the governor as a humane and visionary leader who understands the pain and anguish pensioners had been going through, stressing that the members will continue to support the governor for the good works he has been doing.He further urged the pensioners to use the money judiciously by investing it so as to be able to sustain themselves and their family members.According to him, the best way to avoid difficulties of the past is to invest wisely and avoid any form of extravagancy.
Posted on: Sat, 10 Jan 2015 16:47:36 +0000
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