03072019 - Buhari's Ruga policy, an explosive issue — SOYINKA

42— Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, JULY 3, 2019
Verification: Lamentation as Airways
Pensioners no sleep at center
By Victor Ahiuma-Young & Monsuru
Olowoopejo
vicahiyoung@yahoo.com
Employers to pay more into contributory pension
scheme
•As NUCFRLANMPE, CANMPEF agree to end gratuity
Stories by Victor Ahiuma-
Young
AFTER protracted disagreement
between the
Organised Labour under the
aegis of the National Union
of Chemical Footwear, Rubber,
Leather and Non-Metallic
Products Employees, NUC-
FRLANMPE and the employers’
federation on the auspices
of the Chemical and Non-
Metallic Products Employers’
Federation, CANMPEF, on
whether to scrap gratuity
scheme, both parties have
agreed on the way forward.
The parties had been at parallel
lines over the issue following
the introduction of the
Contributory Pension
Scheme, CPS, as result of the
Pension Reform Act, PRA,
2004, as amended, threatening
industrial peace in the
sector.
A memorandum of collective
agreement between
CANMPEF and NUCFR-
LANMPE reached on the plat-
PENSIONERS of the defunct
Nigeria National
Shipping Line, NNSL, who
spent their active lives as seamen
to serve the nation, are
today not happy men, there is
no doubt about that. While
some of them died lamenting,
those alive are passing
through harrowing experiences
of destitution over unpaid
monthly pensions that
have accumulated for over 40
years.
The Ministry of Transportation
from all indications, appears
unwilling to pay the elder
statesmen their legal entitlements,
despite entreaties
from concerned stakeholders
including the Maritime Workers
Union of Nigeria, MWUN.
To compound the matter, officials
of the ministry have refused
to obey two subsisting
court judgements directing
payment of monthly pensions
to these senior citizens.
Not relenting on ensuring
that at least, these retirees
that are still alive reap the
fruits of their labour, MWUN
has petitioned the International
Transport Federation, ITF,
seeking its intervention for the
pensioners to get paid.
In a petition addressed to
the ITF through its Executive
Board Member and Vice-
Chairman, African Region,
Nigerian Najeem Yasin,
MWUN lamented that the “retirees
are now old, worn out
and spent. They can no longer
engage in any active job to
*A cross section of prospective retirees during a presentation at the 2019 Abuja Pre-
Retirement Workshop for Prospective Retirees of Treasury-Funded MDAs due to retire in
2020.
form of the National Joint Industrial
Council, NJIC, on gratuity,
reads “both parties formally
agreed to stop gratuity
scheme in the industry effective
April 1, 2019. It was agreed
that a sweetener of 3% (Basic
salary, housing and transport
allowance) shall be on top of
employer’s contribution under
the pension scheme, CPS, to respective
employees’ Pension
Fund Administrators, PFAs, on
a monthly basis or to the fund
managers where such gratuity
fund had been moved to fund
manager in line with 2007
agreement.
“The parties also agreed that
where employers are yet to
move gratuity to fund managers
in line with the 2007 agreement,
such employers shall calculate
accrued gratuity up till
April 1, 2019, using the retroactive
model of calculation.
Where such situation exists as
in (1) above, employers have a
maximum of the three years to
move such accrued gratuity either
to the fund managers or
PFAs as mutually agreed with
the workforce or their representatives.
“Where an employer to whom
this agreement applies is already
paying rates or creating
conditions which are superior
to ones contained in this agreement,
the superior rates or conditions
of employment shall
continue.”
Labour seeks ITF intervention over 40yrs unpaid pensions to
defunct NNSL pensioners
•Accuses Ministry of Transportation of breaching court orders
feed themselves and families.”
The union pleaded with the
Executive Board Member who
incidentally is a Deputy President
of Nigeria Labour Congress,
NLC, to bring the weight
of the international body to bear
and ensure that the pensioners
are paid their accumulated
monthly pensions.
The petition by MWUN Secretary-General,
Felix Akingboye,
argued that to worsen the
plight of the ex-NNSL employees,
“most of their children have
now turned street urchins due
to lack of financial wherewithal
to keep them in school.”
Among others, MWUN petition
reads in part: “The retirees,
having waited in vain for
several years for the payment
of their terminal benefits, were
compelled to approach the National
Industrial Court in 1991
and later in 2005. Judgements
delivered by Hon. Justice P. A.
Atilade and Hon. Justice B. A.
Adejumo both of the National
Industrial Court, NIC, on 9th
May, 1991 and 2005 respectively,
affirmed that the retirees
were entitled to payment of gratuity
and monthly pension.
While gratuity has been paid
to some of the retirees who either
showed up personally or
by proxy at the various verification
exercises organised and
carried out by top ranking Federal
Ministry of Transportation,
FMOT, officials, however, they
have been denied payment of
monthly pension up till now.
“We have made passionate
appeals to the Hon. Minister
of Transportation for the full
implementation of the NIC
judgement by paying monthly
pension to the retirees
through the Nigeria Maritime
Administration and Safety
Agency, NIMASA, but the
Hon. Minister, rather than
address the issue, alleged
that ‘’the disengaged seafarers
were paid in excess of their
entitlements’’, and in consequence,
directed vide letter
RT.0588/S.48/T./ of 10th April,
2018 that he be furnished
with the addresses of seafarers
who were allegedly paid
in excess of entitlement.
“What we are demanding for
is payment of monthly pension
to the retirees in line with
the court judgement and not
gratuity. The allegation of excess
payment of entitlements
is not true as several committees
were constituted by the
Federal Ministry of Transportation
to verify those that were
payable and almost all the verification
committee members
were top ranking Ministry of
Transportation officers.
From all indications, the
Hon. Minister of Transportation
is neither willing nor interested
in implementing the
judgement of NIC. A precedent
is being laid.
“The retirees are now old,
worn out and spent. They can
no longer engage in any active
job to feed themselves and
families. Most of their children
have now turned street
urchins due to lack of financial
wherewithal to keep them
in school. Their health keeps
deteriorating each passing
day. Their only hope of survival
is hinged on payment of
monthly pension even if it is
peanuts. We crave your expeditious
intervention to save the
lives of these retirees.”
Pre-retirement workshop to ensure a hitch-free
retirement life---PenCom
NATIONAL Pension Commission,
PenCom, has given
insight into why it is organising
a pre-retirement workshop
for 2020 prospective Federal
Government retirees across
the country.
Addressing participants of the
workshop in Ilorin, Kwara
State, Acting Director of the
commission, Aisha Dahir-
Umar, informed that the workshop
taking place in 15 centres
nationwide was necessitated by
the need to undertake adequate
sensitisation and public enlightenment
in order to prepare prospective
retirees on the steps to
take towards a hitch-free retirement
life.
Represented by a senior official
of the commission,
Abubakar Ali, the Acting DG said
among others, “you would recall
that the objectives of the Pension
Reform Act (PRA 2014) is to ensure
that every person who
worked in either the Public Service
of the Federation, Federal
Capital Territory, States and Local
Governments or the Private
Sector receives his retirement
benefits as and when due and to
establish uniform set of rules,
regulations and standards for all
aspects of pension administration,
including payment of retirement
benefits to retirees
amongst others.
“As part of our annual regulatory
activities, the Commission
has finalised arrangements to
commence the verification of
prospective retirees who would
be retiring in the year 2020 from
the public service of the federation.
The verification exercise is
scheduled to hold from 1 July to
2 August, 2019 in 15 centers
across the country. The forthcoming
exercise, therefore, necessitated
the need to undertake
adequate sensitisation and public
enlightenment in order to
prepare prospective retirees on
the steps to take towards a hitchfree
retirement life."
She added that "the achievements
recorded by the Commission
in the last 16 years would
not have been possible without
the support and understanding
of all stakeholders, especially
you, our esteemed contributors
who are about to retire.”