Delta State Association of Contributory Retirees Monday appealed to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa to save their souls from penury and untimely death by paying pension benefits based on N18,000 minimum wage.
The Retirees also carried out the world to assist them to plead with the state government to have a human face and harking to the long aged demand of paying pension benefits.
The Chairman of the Association, Comrade Agbaka Isaiah who stated this in Asaba while briefing newsmen said that all pension reform acts both federal and Delta state stipulates expressly that a worker upon retirement should not earn less than 50 percent of his last salary before retirement.
Association Chairman who was represented by the Vice chairman, Mr. Anthony Osanekwu said that the current payment based on N7,500 has placed them at a disadvantaged position.
According to him, ” We members of ACR are vehemently opposed to / reject the inclusion of Messrs Prof. Monye and Mr. Emu Kingsley in the present committee. We have no atom of confidence in them as we strongly believe that they have selfish conduit pipe ploy/ interest in the whole exercise abinitio, more so as their several submitted reports were faulty.
“The constant involvement of these individuals and setting up of several committees to work with H R, tend to portray an element of government gimmicks of circumventting the payment of N18,000 harmonised pension.
“It becomes an issue of man’s inhumanity to man seeing that it is a glaring case of negligence of persons who have slaved all their youthful years to serve and are expected to be regarded as senior citizens who deepen on only their pension to meet with all their domestic challenges “. he said.
Comrade Agbaka urged Governor Okowa to involve NLC, JNC, TUC, and ACR in the present committee since they were part of the committee that submitted the acceptable working handy report of the moment.
He said that “state government should invite PENCOM to the committee as well as the two actuarial valuers i. e B. A Adigun and Associate and H. E consultancy services to defend their reports before PENCOM and the committee so as to adopt the report with the best practices of actuarial valuation, to put an end to this issue of harmonised pension.”
