The Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu has, Tuesday, approved a 33 per cent increment for all State Pensioners under the Defined Benefits Scheme (PAY AS YOU GO) with effect from the January 1 this year.
The governor also approved the payment of a balance of 25 per cent rent allowance for officers on GL 07 and above who had retired from May 2000 to August 2004.
The Commissioner for Establishments, Training and Pensions, Mrs. Ajibola Ponnle disclosed this in a meeting with the members of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners recently.
She affirmed that both the increment and payment of the arrears would take effect from September this year in a bid to meet up with the harmonisation exercise for the pensioners.
She stated that since he assumed office, the governor has paid a total of N1.893bn to pensioners under the Defined Benefit Scheme, adding that all monthly pensions are paid as at when due without exception, despite the shortfall in revenue accruable to the State government occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to her, under the Contributory Pensions Scheme, the state government paid over N21bn as accrued pension rights to 5,354 retirees from last May to August this year while over N978m was credited into the Retirement Savings Accounts of 405 retirees this June.
Maintaining that all retirement bond certificates for June this year have been released to the Pension Fund Administrators for onward transmission to beneficiaries, Ponnle reiterated that the government is determined to ensure that pensioners’ rights are paid promptly while beneficiaries will continue to enjoy the dividends of democracy in the state.
The commissioner emphasised that the present administration is passionate about retirees’ welfare and will continue to acknowledge their service to the state, hence the reason for the approval geared towards cushioning the effects of the pandemic.
He, however, recalled that the state government recently flagged off the biometric online verification of pensioners in the state, leveraging on technology to ease the statutory audit exercise by making pensioners participate from the comfort of their homes within the country and in the diaspora.
The exercise, according to her, is held bi-annually to forestall financial leakages resulting from the payment of monthly pensions to deceased pensioners.
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