The embattled Pension Reform Task Team,PRTT has raised alarm over alleged fresh looting of pension funds.A statement by Olajide Fashikun,media consultant ,Pension Reform Task Team
Titled : “Head Of Service Pension Office Is Bringing Back Pensioners To The Looting Era” said “There is credible and verifiable intelligence that the Federal Civil Service Pension Office is going back to the looting era as pensioners are being denied of their monthly pensions. About 98% pensioners have been grossly underpaid and some of them totally denied pensions in the months of November 2012, December 2012 and January, 2013.
“In November, 2012; the Head of Service Pension Office desperately hijacked the preparation of monthly pension’s payment without the knowledge of the Pension Task Team or recourse to its authentic biometric database. This singular act shows that the Pension Task Team does not approve and has no control over their finances unlike what Nigerians are made to believe.
PRTT said ,”It is surprising to note that when the Pension Team concluded paper-work preparation for the payment of November, 2012 monthly pension; and as usual, the PRTT sent it to the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Alhaji Bello Isa Sali, who usually approves the payment without delay, but could not attend to it, and with no official communication to date.
“The unfortunate consequences of these actions are that Nigeria pensioners’ funds are being stolen through a remittal alert where a pensioner received bank alert and whereas he is credited with nothing in his bank account, more than 90% of these pensioners are out rightly denied pensions, while about 2% of them are paid only 10% of their entitled pensions.
The spokesman said , “Our hearts bleed for Nigeria’s pensioners that are very fragile, old, ill, voiceless and helpless because they cannot trace where their pension payments are remitted to. We don’t know why the pension mafia is bent on disallowing the restructuring that many people are already enjoying. This is consequent on the trial of those who stole the previous monies.
“The implication is that, the painstaking effort of the Pension Reform Task Team in the last 30 months in trying to reform the Pension administrative system would be bastardised. With the current distraction of the Senate, the pension fraudulent activities have not only resurfaced but it is bigger, bolder and more widespread and likely to be worse than those who are standing trial. Consequently, a whole new vista of pension looting era is back since November 2012.
“The Pension Team has put in place a foolproof electronic pension system (e-pms) for Nigeria pensioners with the full cooperation of the Head of Service who did not interfere with the Pension Task Force’s activities. All security agencies could monitor same from the comfort of their office. As soon as the current Senate issues erupted, the Pension Team wonders why Alhaji Sali facilitated the hijacking of the payment which would ruin the Federal Government pension transformation agenda.
“Even if the takeover is desperately required by OHCSF, it ordinarily requires demarcation as to where the Pension Task Team stopped and where HOS Office will take over improving on the gains of the immediate past era. And in order to safeguard the institutional and individual integrity working under the umbrella of the PRTT and for the purpose of not wasting the enormous and uncommon sacrifices and patriotism put into this enormous assignment.
“The PRTT has achieved 70% completion of restructuring of the Head of Service Pension Office and it is expecting the release of funds for the completion of the remaining critical areas; production of the e-smart cards that will save the government over N2.5bn every quarter; installation of card readers in each Senatorial District in the six geo-political zones for pensioner revalidation and update of data; the final clean up and articulation of the data of the pensioners in the Diaspora and that within the country for a comprehensive and reliable data base.
