Pensioners of the defunct National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) and Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) have called on President Bola Tinubu to wade into the unresolved payment of over N350 billion accrued arrears of their entitlement by the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD).

The senior citizens, under the aegis of Concerned NEPA/PHCN pensioners, said despite several attempts and presentations to PTAD management to pay the arrears, their pleas fell on deaf ears, accusing the directorate of deception.

The senior citizens alleged that since the new PTAD Executive Secretary, Tolulope Odunaiya, assumed duty in November 2024, the traumatisation and impoverishment of pensioners have escalated from bad to worse.

Reliving their ordeals during a Save our Soul (SOS) visit to The Guardian recently, they appealed to Tinubu to look into the excesses of PTAD, unlawful withholding of accrued arrears spanning two decades, illegal deductions through check-off dues and the deliberate delay of monthly pension of all Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS) pensioners for a minimum of one week for the past two years.

The group, led by Dunmoye Oladimeji and Julius Ayodeji, urged Tinubu to rid the DBS pension sector of the alleged atrocities hinged on full-blown corruption.
According to them, the management of PTAD must be thoroughly investigated and the outcome made public to earn pensioners’ and the public trust in the honesty of the government in addressing issues of national importance.

They recalled the letter the group wrote to Tinubu, who they said gave a directive for a forensic audit and investigation of the agency, however, they lamented that the only action that was carried out was the removal of the immediate past Executive Secretary, Chioma Ejikeme and the appointment of the new Executive Secretary, Tolulope Odunaiya, leaving the accrued arrears of entitlements in their letter unresolved.

Also, the pensioners said letters were sent to the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, whose ministry oversees the activities of PTAD, to investigate their matter, which has not been responded to.

The senior citizens also claimed that efforts made to see the Minister in his office on more than seven occasions proved abortive as they were left unattended to.
“All we are asking for is to hear the position concerning the final payment of all our accrued arrears of entitlements as per Mr President’s directive for a forensic audit and investigation into our complaint of PTAD management’s violation of our rights by the non-payment of what is rightfully ours after receiving the funds from the government eight years ago.
“We believe the directive from the President would include the instruction to pay us accordingly, but nothing of such is happening right now, and more of our pensioners are falling sick and dying from sickness that can be treated, and the pensioners’ lives can be prolonged for more years possibly,” they said.

The duo said from a total of 14,000 pensioners, only 9,340 pensioners are alive, according to the records of PTAD management in the outcome of their five-stage computations that lasted four years, 2019 to 2023.

They alleged that for more than 23 months, deductions from their monthly pensions have continued under the false claims of overpayment and all the recovered money from the alleged slashing and illegal deductions of the monthly pension are never returned to the Single Treasury Account (TSA) but are diverted to the second bank account operated by PTAD management secretly.

“From the information available to us, PTAD operates another account aside from the Federal Government Single Treasury Account where most of these diverted funds are kept for easy access to do what they please with and away from the prying eyes of the Federal Government.

“They even claim that they borrow money to pay the pension from the said account sometimes when the release of money from the office of the Accountant General of the Federation is taking too long to come. This shows a grossly inadequate monitoring of the activities of PTAD management that has gone to hyper level from the high level it was before.

“With this unfortunate development the vulnerable pensioners are the ones suffering the backlashes continuously for years on end as some have passed away, some bedridden and the rest becoming despondent without succour,” they said.

Stating that they are senior staff/pensioners who do not subscribe to any union/association, however, they alleged that those in the Registrar of Trade Unions office in the Ministry of Labour and Employment instructed PTAD management to forcefully deduct their pension as check-off dues for their favourite association or union (s) saying such action was a gross violation of their rights to freedom of assembly and association.

The check-off dues, they stressed, have run into N2 billion, calling for a reversal as they should not be forced into any union.

“Those of us still alive are appealing to Mr President to act now and save us from avoidable early deaths due to this traumatization from the past and present PTAD management.
“If this advice is disregarded anyhow by those involved, we will not hesitate to use the powerful arm of God Almighty, the just judge, aligned with the long arm of the Nigerian law as enshrined in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to address the issue appropriately,” they added.

In reaction to the allegations, Head of Corporate Communications, PTAD, Gbenga Ajayi, said that the government owing pensioners was undeniable, adding, “because there are some arrears that we need to pay, but them quoting one figure that they have given it to PTAD to pay and PTAD now pockets the money, that is the fiat there.

“Pensioners would get what is due for them as at when due. We are not warehousing anything. Their money will come straight from the CBN into their accounts. So where is PTAD now keeping the money, they are talking about? If you say the government owes you and they have not paid, you have the right to agitate; you have the right to request the payment. But it is not enough to begin to fabricate figures.

“The first question you ask them is, who did the calculation total for them? How did they get to know how much? Are they the ones preparing the vouchers for payments?

“Nobody has written to PTAD that is not part of any union that PTAD is deducting any COD. And this COD, PTAD does not have any percentage. It is still their union that is taking everything.”