The Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Lagos State Chapter, Najeemdeen Ibrahim, has pleaded with the Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola, to make sure that his administration pays the three-year arrears of 142 per cent pension increment approved by the Federal Government in 2000.
Speaking to newsmen on the struggle for the actualisation of their demand, the Union Chairman disclosed that when the 142 per cent increment was announced by the Olusegun Obasanjo regime in 2000, Lagos State did not implement it prompting the pensioners to head for court.
The judge decided the case in their favour ordering the state government not only to implement the increment, but to also pay all the arrears to the pensioners.
“Out of the six-year arrears, the state government paid only three years, leaving a balance of three years,” Mr. Ibrahim said. “That was for the 142 per cent. The state has not even implemented the six per cent and 15 per cent. So we are calling on the Babatunde Raji Fashola administration to ensure the payment of these arrears and implementation of the six per cent and 15 per cent increment before leaving office.”
Premium Times reported that the union had written several letters to the state government on the payment of the three years’ arrears but the government has not been responding.
Furthermore, the union members embarked on protests to the state governor’s office. During one of the protests, Mr. Ibrahim said, Mr. Fashola attended to them, assuring that his administration would pay the arrears before his tenure ended.
“Indeed, a circular was released in November (2014) that the government will pay the three years arrears in instalment,” the NUP boss who also doubles as the southwest chairman of the union explained. “They promised to pay the first 18 months, then spread the remaining 18 months over six months of three month arrears each together with the implementation of the six per cent and 15 per cent increment.”
“They only paid the Alausa pensioners leaving out local government, state parastatals and primary school teaching and non-teaching pensioners,” Mr. Ibrahim said.
