Retirees protest in Ogun, demand suspension of contributory pension scheme

Retired civil servants in Ogun State on Monday staged a protest to demand the immediate suspension of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and the remittance of what they described as nearly 18 years of unremitted pension deductions

The protesters, in their large numbers, took the peaceful protest to the doorstep of the Governor’s Office at his Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, the state capital, displaying various placards to register their displeasure against the CPS.

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The aggrieved pensioners accused successive administrations of violating the laws guiding the scheme and abandoning workers who served the state for decades. They argued that the scheme introduced in 2008, with a mandatory 7.5 per cent deduction each from employees and government, had failed due to non-remittance by the latter.

They also explained that although deductions were made consistently from workers’ salaries, the state allegedly failed to remit both the workers’ contributions and its own counterpart funding into their Retirement Savings Accounts, leaving many retirees with less than N3 million after over 30 years of service.

The protesters expressed concern that their gratuities under the old Defined Benefit Scheme were also not paid into their accounts as required by law, accusing past administrations of shifting implementation timelines and ignoring statutory obligations.

They noted that the current Dapo Abiodun administration had not remitted CPS deductions since assuming office, insisting that the scheme should not continue while arrears from 2008 to date remained unsettled.

The spokesperson of the protesters, Daniel Akanji, described the scheme as a killer policy, saying retirees had been pushed into hardship and emotional distress. He said many of them were unable to afford proper healthcare or fund the education of their children.

Mr Akanji added that some retirees had died prematurely due to a lack of financial support and appealed to Mr Abiodun to suspend the scheme for at least five years or cancel it entirely until all outstanding deductions and gratuities were cleared.

He alleged that labour unions, including the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and Joint Negotiation Committee (JNC), failed to defend workers’ interests by remaining silent and signing agreements with the government without adequate consultation.

The spokesperson questioned why people who were exempted from the CPS or currently enjoying benefits under the Defined Benefit Scheme were appointed to committees saddled with overseeing the policy’s implementation.

The Permanent Secretary, Bureau of State Pensions, Arinola Adetayo, while responding to the protesters, urged the retirees to remain calm, assuring them that the government had approved the process for remitting arrears and crediting their Retirement Savings Accounts.

She assured that payments would be made once affected retirees completed their documentation with the bureau, adding that those who had not submitted their files might experience delays.

The permanent secretary equally explained that after the current palliative payments, monthly pensions would begin to reflect from their Retirement Savings Accounts (RSA) accounts.

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Mrs Adetayo assured that additional pension benefits would be provided and urged the retirees to do the needful by completing all required paperwork to ensure the smooth processing of their outstanding entitlements.

Meanwhile, despite the assurances, the retirees maintained their call for the suspension of the CPS, insisting that the scheme, in its current form, does not safeguard their welfare or reflect the years they dedicated to public service.