The Ekiti Government on Tuesday released N250 million for the payment of oustanding pensions to additional set of 86 retirees in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the amount is part of the monthly releases by the Gov. Kayode Fayemi’s administration for the settlement of outstanding retirement benefits for pensioners.
Mr Francis Omotoso, the Acting Executive Secretary, Ekiti PensionTransitional Arrangement Department (PTAD), made this known at a news conference in Ado Ekiti.
According to Omotoso, the N250 million will be used to offset the outstanding balance of pension for May and June.
He said that the earlier proposed scheme aimed at further paying the backlog of retirees’ gratuities through a negotiated discount process had been jettisoned.
The governor said this in line with the demand of the affected stakeholders that rejected the idea.
The PTAD boss reiterated government’s commitment to the welfare of the people, particularly the elderly who had served the state meritoriously.
Omotoso noted that the governor had promised to regularly release tranches of N250 million for payment of pensions until all outstanding retirement benefits were cleared.
In her remarks, the state Head of Service, Mrs Peju Babafemi, advised the affected pensioners to be prudent with their resources and expend them on veritable ventures that would improve their lives.
Babafemi stressed that if the pensioners carfully planned and managed their ventures well, it would guarantee a stable and comfortable future for them and their families.
She said that the commitment of the state government to the general wellbeing of pensioners in the state was commendable.
She urged the retirees to continue to support the present administration’s efforts to rapidly develop the state and improve the lots of the people.
One of the pensioners, Mrs Akintade Margret, also commended the commitment of the current administration to their welfare.
Also, the Chairman, Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Ekiti chapter, Mr Joel Akinola, expressed gratitude to government for its “relentless efforts at improving the lots of pensioners in the state’’. (NAN)
