THE Nigeria Union of Pensioneers (NUP) in Nasarawa State has expressed its gratitude to Govenor Abdullahi Sule for his efforts and passion towards addressing the plight of Pensioneers and other retirees in the State to enable them have a peaceful rest after retirement.
The newly elected chairman of the NUP Alhaji Abdullahi Baba made the commendation while speaking in an exclusive interview with THE NIGERIA STANDARD in his office at Lafia recently. He said that the Governor has demonstrated that he has a great passion and desire towards improving the lot of Pensioneers and retirees in the state through the constant payment of their pensions and other benefits.
He therefore expressed the delight that after the settlement of all pension arrears including the stoppage of percentage payments he inherited from the previous administration, he has also succeeded in stabilizing the payment and promised to do more in the interest of making them feel that their labour would not go in vein.
“Infact, the passion demonstrated by the Governor in addressing our plight has not only encouraged us but made us to believe that our labour or contributions we have made for our fatherland would never go in vein as such we are highly grateful” he stated.
He stated that it was in recognition of the concern shown by the governor to their welfare that they also named their new secretariat after him and assured that they would continue to partner and pray for him to succeed in his endeavours and political aspirations beyond 2023.
“It was in recognition of the great concern demonstrated by the governor to our welfare that we also reciprocated the gesture by naming our Secretariat after him and we are always assuring him of our continued partnership and support in all his endeavours and political aspirations beyond 2023 so that the people of the state would continue to reap therein” he stressed.
Speaking further on the payment of gratuities arrears which the Governor raised it from the paltry sum of N10m to N50m the NUP Chairman described the gesture as quite encouraging, an action he said would go a long way in increasing the number of beneficiaries and also improve the amount they would be getting as part of their payments.
Baba however appealed that just as Oliver Twist who always asks for more they are appealing to the governor for an upward review of the monthly allocations for the payment of gratuities to the sum of N100m to enable it cover more people waiting on the line and also improve the amount to be collected by the retirees.
Similarly, the NUP chairman stated that the sum of N26 million being released monthly by the 14 LGAs for gratuity of retirees at the LGA level is grossly inadequate, saying that the union would ensure that it is reviewed upward to N130 million monthly.
Baba expressed the belief that if such reviews were effected more retirees would heave a sigh of relief especially that there were backlog of them untouched as such the need to also look at their situations with a human face becomes highly imperative.
Meanwhile, the leadership of the NUP has assured that it would continue to do its best towards protecting the general interest of its members especially that there are many of them that are vulnerable and in dire need of one form of support or the other.
The NUP however solicited for more support and co-operations from its members and all the authorities concern to enable them succeed in the discharge of its mandates to the best of their abilities.
