September 25, (THEWILL) – Many retired civil servants who worked in the Kano State Government have alleged favouritism in the shortlisting of beneficiaries for subsequent payment of gratuities to retirees by the Kano State Pension Board.
The retirees made the allegations in an interview with newsmen in Kano on Wednesday.
The retired workers, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they had hoped to experience a smooth payment of their benefits by the State Government because of the commitment shown by Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf to their plight, but that the hope is being dashed.
“The Governor had paid gratuities to our fellow retirees in two tranches which is commendable and which rekindled our hope that we will be paid in subsequent batches, soonest, but with the latest happenings, such hopes are now dashed.
“Because we have realised that only supporters of the ruling party in the state, the NNPP, are being considered for the next batch of the payment of our accrued benefits, and this is unfortunate.
“Unfortunate because we have spent several years waiting for the benefits, with most of us sliding into destitution due to the prolonged delay in the payment of the money.
“Some of us have even offered to part with something out of the money so as to get paid, but to no avail”, the Senior Citizens stated.
The Executive Chairman of the Board, Habu Muhammad Fagge, declined comments as he referred journalists’ enquiries to other officials of the agency, who also refused to talk on the matter.
THEWILL recalls that the State Government had, so far paid more than N11 billion as gratuities and death benefits out of the over N43 billion it inherited from the immediate past administration in the state.
The government made the payment in two batches of N5 billion and N6 billion respectively, with the promise to offset the whole backlog of the benefits.
Abdullahi Yusuf is a seasoned journalist, communicator and was previously the Deputy Editor-In-Chief and Zonal Manager, News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Jos, where he retired on December 15, 2021
