Pensioners Refute Campaign Against Aregbesola on Paris Club Loan Refund

Details have emerged on the true state of payment for pensioners in the State of Osun, showing that senior citizens in the state have received their monthly entitlements up till December 2016. This is contrary to the claims of a curious group that claimed that it was out to get the governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola.

Prince Rotimi Adelugba, Chairman of Triangular Pensioners Association of Osun, stated that pensioners in the state has been paid up till December 2016, just like the state government said. He further  explained that “Osun State is still paying according to the Memorandum of Understanding reached between Labour and the Government. Imo State is owing 72 months”.

About the protesting pensioners, Prince Adelugba said without mincing words that he believed they were being sponsored. ” Osun State is a peaceful state, so I don’t understand why some people will go on rampage. At least by December last year, we collected three months. Then in late December, we collected the December pension as agreed upon”, he said.

It would be recalled that at the last Pensioners prayer meeting and medical checkup held at the recently renovated Freedom Park Osogbo, pensioners appreciated governor Rauf Aregbesola for the payment of their pensions in December and called on him to pay their outstanding gratuities.

A handful however formed a group and raised a banner that the group claimed was ‘Osun IDP Camp’. This, the group claimed was to “expose Governor Aregbesola”.

Other individuals have also condemned the group as fraudulent and revealed it’s leaders as a former judge who was sacked and the leader of a ” rogue CSO who is under investigation by the EFCC”.

Indigenes of the state such as, Demola Dekunle also debunked the group’s antics, explaining that his retired parent was paid till December 2016. In a comment made on an online news site, Demola called the story a fraud, stating that  “Punch displayed IDP canopy wit (sic) less 20 people. Osun has over 10,000 retirees, my father, Mr. Yaya Kasali Adebayo, inclusive, who got N161,000 among the least, for Sept, Oct, Nov & Dec. less than 2wks ago. Level 1-7 got full pay; 8-10 got 75%; and 12 above got 50% like those who are still in the service. This kind of crass negative political propagandum does not merit Punch edification”.

At the prayer meeting, Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners in the state, Comrade Omoniyi Ilesanmi alleged the state government owed the retired workers half of their pension between July 2014 and December, 2016. This would apply to pensioners who retired on Level 12 and above and the payment arrangement was for them to get 50% while levels 8-10 got 75% and Levels 1-7 got their full payments.

Osun Defender recalls Governor Aregbesola had in a statement last week, stated the sum of N14.2bn was used to clear staff salaries and pensions arrears for September 2016 to December 2016.