Ortom To Benue Pensioners: I’m Ashamed Of Your Situation

Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has said he is ashamed as a governor seeing the precarious situation of pensioners in the state.

Ortom stated this on Friday when he met with the protesting pensioners in the state at the entrance of the Government House in Makurdi where they had been sleeping in the last three days.

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The governor, who promised to release N611m to complete to complete the payment of their April and May 2018 pensions, said the delay in the payment was not deliberate.

“I am very ashamed before all of you and as a state, that I, as a governor, am seeing the precarious situation you are all in today.

“I have no reason to justify our inability to pay you your entitlements. Some of you are receiving very small amounts. We will look for ways to resolve this problem,” he said.

The pensioners had since Wednesday been protesting the non-payment of their pension allowances and gratuities spanning 25, at the government house.

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While explaining that his administration inherited unpaid pension allowances of over 34bn, with outstanding gratuities of over 17bn, the governor said the government was able to make significant efforts in the payment of that regard.

He however said government was still owing over N20bn.

The governor said his administration would have to seek an overdraft of N611m to be able to complete the shortfalls from the April and May 2018, assuring that the money would be paid latest by September 10.

He further explained this his administration had also moved a step further by signing into law the PENCOM Bill and constituting the state pension commission as one of the ways of finding lasting solutions to the issue of pension and gratuities.

He said that government would continue to source for funds to meet its obligations to the citizens, especially the senior ones.

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Ortom apologised to the senior citizens over the inability of the government to pay them their entitlement as and when due.

The governor said that government was working on getting a N40bn bond to address some of the challenges currently facing the state.

While expressing appreciation to the governor for taking time to meet them, Chairman of Concerned Pensioners, Peter Ikyado urged the governor to quickly meet their demands as promised.

He said that the pensioners were not happy over the non-payment of their pension allowances and gratuities which had accumulated to 25 months.

Ikyado also said that his members were demanding for the harmonisation of their pensions in line with the new salary structure in the state.

He explained that as senior citizens, they were supposed to be placed on first line charge, but regretted however that the reverse had been the case since the beginning of the Ortom-led administration.

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