Assembly Orders N728m Gratuities, Pension Arrears Payment

Men and officers of 302 Artillery Regiment, Onitsha in Anambra State, donating gift items and undisclosed amount of cash to motherless babies home in Otuocha, Anambra East LGA, yesterday.

The Enugu State House of
Assembly Committee on Water Resources last Thursday recommended that the State Water Corporation should pay its retirees N728.15 million outstanding pension and gratuity.
The Chairman of the committee, Mr. Ikechukwu Ezeugwu (PDP-Udenu), made the recommendation in Enugu while presenting the committee’s report on the non-payment of the pension and gratuities to the retirees.
He said the amount was made up of 39 months of arrears of pension and seven years of non-settlement of gratuities.
“The pension should be paid on monthly basis just as that of other pensioners in the state in order to avoid further accumulation of the arrears and save the pensioners from further hardship.
“The management of the water corporation should work out measures to clear the arrears of the pension and gratuity,” Ezeugwu said.
He said that when the committee met with the Managing Director of the corporation, Mr. O’brien Ofordu, he did not contest the pensioners’ claims.
He quoted Ofordu as saying that there was no money to service the debt.
According to him, Ofordu had explained that the corporation’s internally-generated revenue was ploughed back to service the arrears but it was grossly inadequate.
The chairman expressed the hope that if the recommendations of the committee were implemented, it would go a long way in cushioning the effects of the debt.
The pensioners had petitioned the assembly last year over the non-payment of their pension and gratuities.
According to the retirees, the arrears of 39 months of pension accumulated between January 2007 and August 2013 to the tune of N388.14 million while the gratuities amounting to N339.74 million accumulated from 2005 to 2012.
The assembly presided over by the Deputy Speaker, Mr. Chime Oji (PDP-Enugu North), deferred debate on the report.