As far as we the retired Staff of the Federal Judiciary are concerned, the National Pension Commission is a big failure. This is because when PENCOM officials thumb their chest for the so called success they claim to have achieved, they cover up the fact that staff of the Federal Judiciary who retired under the contributory Pension Scheme since 2009 are still waiting to receive their entitlements. Again no matter what success the PENCOM claims to achieve, if there is one retiree who did not get his/her benefits for no fault of his/hers, the PENCOM has failed and we are over a thousand who have not accessed our benefit under the scheme.
The issues that culminated in the Non payment of retirement benefits to the unfortunate retired Federal Judiciary Staff are unbelievable but true.
When some of us retired in 2010, we were told that it will take only three months for us to achieve our entitlements. We waited in anticipation. After three months and nothing happened, we began to worry. Previously in 2009 we were invited by PENCOM for verification and enrolment which we responded to and completed.
When after three months we did not receive our entitlements as promised by our Pension fund managers, we approached PENCOM and was told that the Budget Office advised PENCOM to stop paying retired Judiciary staff because the Judiciary under the National Judicial Council refused to contribute the funds required to redeem our accrued Pension rights. Since then the National Judicial Council through its executive secretary has refused to entertain any complaints regarding our entitlements claiming that the Pension Reform act 2004 did not require the council to provide for the fund necessary for the redemption of our entitlements. Recently we were invited to a meeting with the said executive secretary over the issue and he reiterated his stand that Section 29 of the PRA did not require NJC to pay the money required to redeem our money even when it was explained to him reason why the NJC should do so. He claimed that he held a meeting with DG Budget Office of the Federation who took time to explain to him that all MDAs are having deductions made from there allocation to fund the bond redemption and that they could not deduct any money from the NJC’s allocation because NJC collects their allocation through statutory allocation. PENCOM even wrote to NJC explaining the same situation, yet the Executive secretary, the Chairman, who doubles as Chief Justice of Nigeria remained adamant in their refusal to do the right thing to their retired employees.
In all these the National Pension Commission as the regulator of pension has done nothing to make the NJC see reason and do the right thing. PENCOM has also refused to allow our pension managers to pay us from our meager contributions, claiming that the amount does not represent the ‘final balance’ in our account as provided by the same Act which they flouted with impunity in our situation. Since 2009 till date no retired staff of Federal Judiciary has been paid.
Please in the name of God, I implore you to use your investigative machinery to uncover why the Federal Judiciary, the so called ‘last hope of the common man’ has been unjust in the matter of its retired staff.
We believe that some people at NJC have created this problem to enable them help themselves with funds meant for the redemption of the bond. Billions may have been stolen since 2009.
Thank You and God bless.
Written by Onwukeme Kenneth.
08034502845
