Mrs Anohu-Amazu
By ZAKA KHALIQ(NEWSWATCH TIMES NEWSPAPER)
There are strong indications that the current Outstanding Accrued Rights may increase, when the 2016 budget is passed as the Federal Government only made provision for N50 billion as against N91 billion needed to pay the federal government workers who will retire in the current year.
Already, the 2015 outstanding accrued right yet to be paid by Federal Government to pensioner stands at N20billion and the figure might rise to N61 billion, if the N41 billion outstanding accrued pension rights for 2016 is added.
Speaking on this development at a media parley in Lagos, the Director General, National Pension Commission (PenCom), Mrs. Anohu-Amazu, said that N91billion request was made by the commission to the budget office for those who are due to retire in 2016 but only N50billion request was granted in the budget.
If the N50billion requested is funded by the government, she said there is going to be a deficit because from PenCom’s figures, N91billion was needed to pay every retiree that will retire in 2016.
The PenCom boss further said that the problem only affect federal government employees, while those in the private sector don’t have such issues because they are already funded.
She, however, stressed that government is making efforts to clear all outstanding pension payment, while attributing the growth in pension deficit to the financial crisis ravaging the country.
To resolve this problem, she said PenCom is soliciting for support from the media and other stakeholders to support the commission in prioritising the pension process and proffer ways for government to end the pension deficit in the country.
She said the funds are not available due to competing demand for draggling resources available; assuring that the outstanding payment will soon be sorted out.
She assured that the Contributory Pension Scheme(CPS) remains the safest scheme, adding that since the commencement of the scheme in 2004, it has not record any form of fraud, which she said, was made possible by the pension law.
