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Abia Grapples With N21bn Pension Arrears, Says Commissioner

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The Abia State Commissioner for Finance, in Abia, Mr Aham Uko, says the state is putting pragmatic measures in place to offset a whooping N21 billion pension arrears.
Uko made the disclosure when he briefed newsmen in Umuahia on a fresh biometric verification of pensioners by the ministry, which kicked off in different parts of the state on Monday.
He said that the exercise was part of the measures designed to “remove irregular names” from the list and ascertain the exact number of genuine pensioners.
He further said that the verification was exclusive to state government and primary school retirees and entailed fingerprints and facial capturing of the pensioners.
The commissioner said that the 10-day exercise would end on March 27 to enable the ministry to pay the March pension to successful pensioners.
Uko said: “Government deemed it fit to conduct the biometric verification for pensioners to ascertain who the genuine pensioners are.
“The essence is to regularise and update the list of pensioners and remove the names of dead pensioners.
“Government’s intention is to ensure regular and seamless payment of pensions.”
He regretted that the ministry still had the names of dead pensioners running for upward of 10 years, adding that normally such beneficiaries “should not benefit beyond five years.”
He said that the exercise would help the government “to establish the quantum of arrears and be able to appropriate funds to liquidate the arrears in the coming months.”
The commissioner said that 55 persons were trained to run the exercise, adding that the ministry procured a server, plus a virtual server, for data storage at the end of the programme.
He said that arrangements were made to accommodate genuine pensioners, who travelled outside Nigeria.
“We made provision to capture spillovers, especially genuine pensioners outside Nigeria,” he said, adding that such persons should supply the vital information via the ministry’s website.
Uko said that plans were underway to also introduce Bank Verification Numbers to avoid duplication of names, in addition to creating a database for pensioners.
The commissioner said that the verification would help the ministry to have a comprehensive list of all the retirees, including those that retired from November 2019 to February.
He said that a list from Establishment and Pensions showed that the state’s monthly pension bill stood at N510 million before October but got reduced to N380 million after manual verifications.
“By the time we succeed in removing all the irregular names, the arrears would further come down.
“The ultimate objective is to ensure that after the verification, pensions would be paid as and when due,” he said.
The commissioner said that the ministry would extend the biometric verification to local government pensioners at the end of the ongoing exercise at the state level.
He also said that a similar verification would be conducted for the state civil servants in line with the government’s plan for automated salary payment to workers.
“By the time we automate salary payment, we shall no longer need the payroll officers and Directors of Finance to prepare salary schedule before we can pay salaries, except when there are transfers and promotions,” he said.
He said that adequate arrangements were put in place, including the provision of refreshment, free medical services and counselling, to make the verification stress-free for retirees.
Uko also spoke on the lingering inability of the government to pay gratuity to retirees, saying that he had not received the governor’s authorisation on that.
He said that government’s major concern presently was to stabilise and regularise the payment of pensions.
According to him, after that, government may begin to work out a strategy to set aside funds for the gradual payment of gratuities.

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NPA Assures On Staff Welfare 

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The Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, has said the management will continue to accompany its port infrastructure  and equipment  modernization drive  with the development of the welfare of its personnel.
Dantsoho made the disclosure recently while responding to the commendation by the Maritime Workers Union (MWUN) and the senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government-Owned Companies (SSASGOC) on the  clearing  of the age-long problem of employee stagnation, when the union paid him a courtesy visit at the Authority’s headquarters in Lagos.
A Statement by NPA’s General Manager Corporate & Strategic Communications, Mr. Ikechukwu Onyemekara, quoted Dantsoho as saying,  “our Port infrastructure and equipment modernization drive will go hand-in-hand with continuous staff welfare improvement”.
The NPA MD disclosed that human capital development constitutes the key strategy for creating and sustaining superior performance under his watch, adding that “talent development constitutes a critical success factor for the actualization of the big hairy audacious goals we have set for ourselves especially in the area of Port competitiveness.
“The only way we can meet and indeed exceed stakeholders’ expectations is to deepen the competencies of our human resources assets and boosting their morale.”
Speaking further, Dantsoho commended the Honourable Minister of Marine & Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, for approving the strategic proposal of the Dantsoho-led Management team that solved the over a decade-long problem of lack of promotion that had fuelled industrial disharmony.
“I must specially appreciate our amiable Minister for graciously approving the multi-pronged stratagem we deployed that cleared all outstanding cases of employee stagnation by conducting examinations in one fell swoop and instituted timelines to forestall a recurrence of such anomaly”, he sad.
Speaking on behalf of the joint maritime labour unions, the President  of Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations & Government-Owned Companies (SSASCGOC), Comrade Bodunde stated, “In addition to clearance of the backlog of stagnated promotions, we also wish to express our appreciation for the increase in productivity bonuses, provision of end-of-year welfare packages for staff, and the revision of the Financial Guide to the Condition of Service, which now addresses our members’ concerns about inflationary pressures.”
Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos
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ANLCA Chieftain Emerges FELCBA’s VP

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National Secretary of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Elder Olumide Fakanlu, has been elected Vice President of the Federation of ECOWAS Licensed Customs Brokers Association (FELCBA).
The election took place during the FELCBA Congress, held from Tuesday, June 17th to Thursday, June 19th, 2025, in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
Fakanlu’s emergence as Vice President marks a significant achievement for Nigeria within the regional customs brokerage community.
Apart from Fakanlu, Secretary of the Seme Chapter of ANLCA, Austin Nwosu, was also elected, securing the role of Secretary of Relations with Institutions.
The Nigerian delegation played an active role in the congress, with Michael Ebeatu nominated as a member of the electoral officer team, ensuring a fair and transparent election process.
The three-day congress concluded with delegates undertaking a visit to the Sierra Leone Port, offering insights into the host nation’s maritime operations, followed by a recreational trip to the Tokeh Beach.
The newly elected executives are expected to lead FELCBA in its efforts to harmonize customs brokerage practices, promote trade facilitation, and advocate for the interests of licensed customs brokers across the ECOWAS sub-region.
Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos
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NSC, Police Boost Partnership On Port Enforcement 

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In a bid to enhance more enforcement in the nation’s Port, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) has reaffirmed its commitment to stronger inter-agency collaboration with the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
The Council said the collaboration is aimed at enhancing stronger enforcement, compliance and improve operational efficiency across Nigeria’s ports.
Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of  NSC, Dr. Pius Akutah, made this known during a visit to the  Inspector-General of Police, Dr. Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, at the Force Headquarters, Abuja.
The visit, which he said, focused on strengthening institutional synergy, comes in the wake of growing responsibilities for the NSC under the newly created Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.
Akutah emphasized the critical role of security agencies in supporting port operations and ensuring regulatory compliance.
He called for the posting of police officers to assist the Council’s monitoring and enforcement teams at key port locations including Lagos, Warri, Onne, Port Harcourt, and Calabar.
“The posting will complement the activities of our revived task teams and enhance our ability to enforce standards across the maritime logistics chain”, he said.
Earlier, the Inspector-General of Police, Dr. Egbetokun, assured the Council of the Force’s readiness to continue supporting the growth of the maritime sector.
The IGP acknowledged that compliance enforcement is essential to the successful implementation of Nigeria’s Blue Economy objectives.
“The NSC and NPF are expected to deepen collaboration in the months ahead, with a shared focus on building a secure, efficient, and competitive port environment”, to the IGP emphasized.
Chinedu Wosu
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