By Amos
PENSIONERS in Benue State on Wednesday staged a peaceful protest to the Makurdi office of the National Human Rights Commission to register their grievances against the Governor Samuel Ortom administration non-payment of pension to the state’s senior citizens.
The retirees began the protest from the Islamic Primary School, Wadata, Makurdi where they gathered for the protest. They were addressed by a government delegation from office of Secretary to the State Government (SSG).
Addressing the protesters, the SSG, Prof. Tony Ijohor, represented by the Chairman, Benue State Pension Commission (PENCOM), Mr Terna Ahua, briefed them on government’s efforts to meet their demands.
The SSG pleaded with the pensioners to stop the protest as according to him, part of their demands including harmonisation of pension and delay in payment of retirement entitlements had been addressed.
Prof Ijohor also assured the senior citizens that monthly pension would be paid this month (December, 2022). He admitted that pension has not been harmonised since the return of democracy, noting that some pensioners were still entitled to only N4,000 and even N300 as a result of lack of harmonisation.
“Somebody just showed me his pension figure which is four thousand naira (N4,000) a month. Actually, there are some even earning three hundred naira or less in a month.
“It is true that pension has not been harmonised since democracy returned to the state. We have done the harmonisation and the report is now ready for submission,” the SSG claimed.
Responding on behalf of the pensioners, Chairperson of the Aggrieved Pensioners, Elder Alex Akosu Orban, who said their main concern was for the government to pay them at least six months’ arrears to stabilise them, lamented that they are always seen by the state government as constituting nuisance whenever they protest for payment of their pensions. He added that promises made to them during protest have never been fulfilled.
Speaking with National Record in an exclusive interview, Orban said: “We told the government to pay us at least six (6) months of arrears to stabilise us, but each time we staged a protest, we are considered as nuisance and treated with disdain.
“The governor said we should continue to waste our time and that we are sponsored by opposition political parties to cause mayhem, destabilisation and dissatisfaction. Instead of addressing the main issues, he brings diversionary measures when he is owing us 38 months at the state level and 75 months at the local government level,” Orban said.
Expressing why their protest was compelling and necessary, Orban alleged that Ortom had in his recent appearance on TVC made a false claim that he was not owing anybody a kobo and so if they don’t protest against it, the next administration will not consider to pay them.
“The governor appeared on TVC and said that he was not owing anybody any kobo and if we like, we should bring a forest of EFCC to investigate him but they will not get anything, that he is clean.
“If we don’t protest to defend that statement, we are giving his denial legitimacy. Tomorrow, another person will ask, why we didn’t say anything while he claimed that he paid us all when he was owing us. That was the primary aim of that protest,” Elder Orban noted.
Also speaking during the protest, a female pensioner who pleaded anonymity, said: “Our concern is this; we want you people to go back and tell the governor; he has family; he knows how we are suffering.”
The pensioners unanimously agreed and sent a delegation to the Human Rights commission where they submitted a letter of complaints.
Receiving the letter, Coordinator of the Makurdi office of the National Human Rights Commission, Joshua Isoye, stated that every pensioner deserves his entitlement and anything to the contrary amounts to denying the person the right to live.
Mr Isoye promised to look into the complaints, pointing out that if it was beyond his office, the letter would be forwarded to the head office in Abuja.
