I invested my retirement benefits in landed assets – Anumudu
Moses Anumudu retired from the Nigeria Police Force as a Superintendent of Police. In this exclusive interview with Daily Trust, Anumudu explains how he invested his retirement benefits in landed assets. He says he retired and became a businessman. He talks on the need for retirement planning, investment in retirement and adequate pension payment to retirees.
How is the experience in retirement?
Well, it is not as bad as I thought it will be. So by the grace of God we are still moving. My notion about retirement as a police officer is that after serving one’s country, there will be a time for rest and if need be, to contribute adequately in any aspect that I can to the development of the Nigeria police and indeed the entire country. This is vital because when we were in active service, there may be some defects in the system. As such, now that we are out, we should be able to spot those defects and if need be communicate them to the proper channels for further action.
What was your preparation towards retirement?
Before I retired, I had foreseen that it was going to be a difficult situation if I did not plan well. Therefore, I had to make preparation towards that. As a senior police officer that was married with children, I had no option than to make substantive preparation for myself and my family fully knowing that after active service, one has to strive to make ends meet. So I did prepare adequately by investing with my retirement benefits. Some people make that mistake of not preparing for retirement which can have lifelong negative effects which on a normal day can be avoided.
What are you doing, now that you are retired?
Well right now, I am a business man. I am into buying and selling of new tyres. I sell petroleum products and fully knowing that landed assets are very lucrative, I acquired it, developed it and rented it out with my retirement benefits. So I am also a landlord. I use the proceeds from the tenement to take care of myself and my family as well as pay tuition fees because some of my children are still in school.
What do you make of pension and retirement in Nigeria?
Well, those that retired before the return of democracy were not finding it easy. The coming of democracy in 1999 and the Federal Government under then President Olusegun Obasanjo reviewed the processes of disbursement of pension as well as its agencies by introducing the National Pension Commission (PenCom). For those that retired before 1999, their pension was little and life was difficult but for me that retired some few years ago, I will say that I give it a pass mark. This is because after retirement, I enrolled in Trust Fund and since then they have been adequately and consistently paying my pension. From the 20th of the month we are already expecting our payment and they do not disappoint. So that arrangement that was spearheaded by then President Obasanjo is commendable because before then, retirees found it difficult to access their gratuity, let alone pension. Retirement, I feel in the Nigerian context, is a time and moment where people rest and reflect on their service to the nation for 35 years and also engage in charitable ventures that will boost their income.
What do you think government can do to improve the lives of pensioners?
Very important is that they have to make adequate preparation for their gratuities to be released immediately after retirement. A case where gratuity is delayed frustrates a lot of people and government needs to look into that. So, regular and complete payment of pension should be a priority. If government can meet up with these two important aspects I think protest by pensioners will be reduced to a barest minimum. This is because people that must have served their country for 35 years should be given fair treatment because they have families and responsibilities to take care of. This is important because as a retiree I made adequate preparation for retirement that is why I have something to fall back on but for many that did not do that it is difficult for them. They often rely on their pension and gratuity to solve their personal and also their immediate families and relations’ needs. Therefore government at all levels - federal, state and local - are expected that no matter the scarcity of funds, pensioners’ entitlements should be a priority.