PUNCH
Privileged government officials have continued to initiate jumbo pensions for themselves to escape the challenges associated with the country’s statutory pensions system meant for workers, NIKE POPOOLA reports
Some of the challenges lingering in Nigeria’s pension industry are non-payment of gratuity and pension, non-remittance of monthly pension deductions for workers, payment of ridiculously low monthly stipends, omission of retirees’ names from payroll, and long-waiting period to get pensions among others.
Nigerian retirees currently earn pensions from two different pension schemes which are, the Defined Benefits Scheme and the Contributory Pension Scheme.
The DBS, known as the old pension scheme, and marred by payment inconsistencies, has subjected Nigerian retirees to huge hardships for decades.
The persisting challenges under the DBS have remained unsolved under the CPS, despite yearly budget allocations from the Federal Government.
Problems in the DBS and CPS are making elected officials among others, to continue to make moves to avoid the schemes and have special juicy pension arrangements for themselves.
