Verification Of Federal Retirees To Continue… PTAD

The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate has stated the continuity  of the Federal Government retirees is currently under its radar so that their pensions and other entitlements could be paid as soon as possible.

Jibrin Idris, The Assistant Director, Pension Administration said this during the verification of pensioners of the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited and its mobile subsidiary, MTEL, in Lagos.

He said, “PTAD has concluded the verification of some retirees including the police and civil service, but will do verification for the remaining parastatals. Recently, the Federal Government approved that PTAD should take over NITEL’s retirees; that’s why we have to verify them and identify the genuine and qualified pensioners among them to begin the process of paying them monthly pensions and any outstanding payments.”

After the exercise, he said, PTAD would compute the retirement benefits to be paid to them.

He also said that relatives of retirees who had died were also coming forward and would be paid their entitlements en bloc.

According to him, the exercise was taking place at various centres across the country such as Lagos, Enugu, Port Harcourt, Kano, Gombe and Abuja.

One of the retirees, Austin Onabuse, expressed delight that the verification was being conducted for the retirees.

He expressed hope that their entitlements would soon be paid to alleviate their sufferings.

“After the privatisation, NITEL retirees were paid pensions for five years after which they stopped paying us; and since then, the struggle to ensure that we are paid has continued,” he said.