Pension Boss Gives Reasons For Payment Delay

The Regional Manager of TrustFund Pension Limited, Mr. Peter Okonjo, says lack of remittances of contributory pension by employers was responsible for the delay in the payment of pensions and gratuities to retirees across the country.
Okonjo, who said this during the TrustFund Pension Customers’ Forum in Port Harcourt, last weekend, said that it was against this background that the National Pensions Commission (PENCOM) was proposing a law that will lead to the recovery of all unremitted funds in the country.
He said the situation had subjected some retirees across the country to untold hardship, stressing that by the law establishing the contributory pension scheme, a retiree ought to get his or her entitlements three weeks after retirement.
Okonjo also listed other factors to include; incomplete documentation, age discrepancies, irregular change of personal information, delay in submitting lump sum agreement form, amongst others.
He said that the customers’ forum, which was an annual event, created opportunities for the company to have closer interaction with its customers with the view to updating them on any developments.
According to him, the event covers both retirees and those about to retire, stressing that a lot of issues bothering on their welfare and how to manage their resources were discussed.
He also said that his company had over 50,000 customers in the South-South, adding that more documentation was also being done in the region.
Some of the retirees, who spoke with newsmen later, called for the upward review of their pensions, and removal of all bottlenecks affecting the smooth payment of their pensions.