Retirees Now Access Pensions Within 48 Hours As FG Clears All Legacy Liabilities—PenCom

The federal government has cleared all outstanding pension liabilities amounting to N758 billion, some dating back almost two decades, the National Pension Commission (PenCom) has said.

The director-general of PenCom, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at the Senior Citizens Day of the maiden National Pension Week with the theme “Pension for All: Building a Secure Future Together.”

Speaking to retirees, senior citizens and stakeholders, the DG said the present administration has prioritised dignity in retirement, noting that retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme now receive their benefits within 48 hours of retirement, provided documentation is complete.

“When I assumed leadership of the National Pension Commission, people were retiring and waiting for almost two years to get paid. One thing was clear — things had to change,” she said.

“We are fortunate to have a President who chose to act. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved almost a trillion naira prioritising ordinary Nigerians, prioritising our senior citizens, ensuring every kobo owed, including arrears from almost 20 years ago, was paid.”

Oloworaran said beyond clearing the backlog, the administration has implemented two major pension increases tagged Pension Boost 1.0 and a N32,000 consequential adjustment across board, which she described as the highest consequential increase at the federal level.

She added that the Commission is set to launch two major welfare initiatives in November — the PennCare Health Initiative for low-income retirees and the Minimum Pension Guarantee.

According to her, the PennCare initiative will provide health insurance cover for retirees, noting that a pilot phase involving 30,000 retirees is already ongoing.

“Some people were earning N20,000 as pension. That is a grave anomaly that should never happen, she said.

 She stressing that this president Bola Ahmed Tinubu chose to correct that injustice. Between now and next month, we will launch PennCare and commence implementation of the minimum pension guarantee,” she said.

The DG told the gathering that retirement security goes beyond payment of benefits, stressing that no Nigerian who served the country for 30 to 35 years should be left to battle medical bills alone.

The National Pension Week is a week-long engagement to get feedback from Nigerians across sectors. It began with youths on Monday and continued with senior citizens on Tuesday.