Police Tear Gas Lagos Pensioners, Sowore Demands Justice

Police officers in Lagos State on Monday reportedly fired teargas at pensioners who gathered at the Lagos House in Ikeja to protest unpaid pension increases, wage awards and other outstanding benefits.

The retirees, drawn from the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) and the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), had gone to the government premises to demand the implementation of the increases and payment of arrears they said had accumulated.

The situation became tense after police officers deployed teargas, forcing some of the protesters away from the premises.

The action came on the date the retirees had earlier set as a deadline for the Lagos State Government to address their grievances.

The pensioners had staged a protest the previous Monday, accusing the state government and the Lagos State Pension Commission of delaying an increase they said had already been approved. They subsequently threatened to stage a larger demonstration on August 31.

However, the Lagos State Government, in a statement, said the administration had recorded what it described as the most outstanding performance on pension matters in the history of the state.

The government said the Lagos State Pension Commission had paid N168.2bn to more than 48,000 retirees from 2007 to date.

It added that between May 2019 and August 2026, the state government had disbursed N92bn in accrued rights to more than 25,000 retirees.

Reacting to Monday’s incident, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, condemned the use of teargas against the pensioners.

Sowore described the action as an “unprovoked attack” on elderly citizens who were peacefully demanding their entitlements.

He said, “It is bad enough that these senior citizens are being denied their legitimate post-retirement entitlements after giving years of their lives in service. To then unleash tear gas on them for peacefully demanding what is rightfully theirs is cruel, reckless, and completely unacceptable.”

Sowore also called for the identification, arrest, investigation and prosecution of the police officers responsible for the incident.

“Our pensioners deserve their entitlements, dignity, and respect, not brutality!he said.