Members of the Federal Universities Pensions Association, Nnamdi Azikiwe University (FUPA-NAU) branch, have cried out over their unpaid N500m accumulated retirement benefits.
The President of FUPA-NAU, Chief Patrick Nweke, who disclosed this to journalists, said of the unpaid benefits, N74 million was arrears of pensions and gratuities from 2005 to date; N82,416,000 outstanding surplus sum from 2010 to August 2015; surplus of N2 million per month on N10 million pensions increment starting from 2010, totalling N336 billion; and controversial transfer of N54 million NAU retirees’ fund to the Federal Government under the unified pension system.
Nweke explained that the monthly payment of N7million totalling N476,000,000, between 2010 and August 2015, is made from the released N8,212,000 million (amounting to N558,416,000), leaving a monthly surplus of N1,212,000 within the period under review.
According to him, several appeals to the institution’s management to settle outstanding pensions and gratuities from the surplus amount were turned down.
Nweke said only 20 out of the 80 pensioners being owed are still alive.
He lamented that several pleas to the management on their plight were rebuffed, as the school allegedly transferred the money to the Accountant-General of the Federation based on an alleged letter of authority from the Federal Government.
He condemned the policy of mop-up of unused funds from pensioners by the former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, which dipped hand into the pensioners’ contributory fund and transferred the same to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Nweke appealed to the Executive Secretary of the Pensions Transition Administration (PTAD), Dr. Chioma Ejikeme, to intervene.
He said “The I-am-alive online verification of living retirees has captured 60 members home and abroad, we urge those who are yet to comply to do so and beat the February 2024 deadline.”
Nweke noted that any retiree who fails to undertake the online documentation risks being removed from the register.
