Lagos govt educates civil servants on retirement savings

The Director-General of the Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC), Babalola Obilana, has lamented that many public servants have yet to open their Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs).

Obilana spoke, yesterday, during a sensitisation programme on the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) for employees of local councils, held in Ikeja, Lagos.

The three-day sensitisation programme targeted 7,457 workers from across the 20 local councils and the five divisions of the state.

The DG, however, warned that the oversight had serious implications for the workers’ future financial security, stating that without an RSA, their pension contributions remained in an escrow account, rather than being invested and managed to generate growth.

He urged the Pension Desk Officers and Directors of Administration and Human Resources to ensure that all employees were well-informed about the pension process and encouraged to open their RSAs, stressing that accurate and timely communication was key to ensuring that everyone was registered and actively participating in the scheme.

Obilana emphasised the importance of public servants regularly reviewing their RSA statements to ensure that their contributions were being debited and remitted correctly.

He said: “I cannot stress enough the importance of opening your RSA without delay. If you have not done so already, I strongly urge you to take action today. The team at LASPEC is available to guide you through the registration process, assist with the required documentation, and provide information about the various PFAs available to you.”

The Head of Service, Bode Agoro, who also spoke at the event, said the sensitisation was aimed at facilitating the seamless processing of retirement benefits for public servants in the state.

Agoro, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Olasunkanmi Oyegbola, said the programme was significant as it allowed for the updating of public servants’ personal and pension-related information, ensuring the efficient processing of retirement benefits.

He, therefore, urged the employees to update their data and ensure that their pension records were current.