33% pension arrears: PTAD denies receiving N54bn to clear backlog
The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) has said that the Directorate did not receive N54 billion from federal government’s coffers to clear the backlog of 33 per cent pension increment.
The Directorate made this clarification on its official twitter handle to dispel rumours making the rounds that the Directorate received the said payment but is yet to settle the arrears.
The Directorate’s Executive Secretary, Barrister Sharon Ikeazor, clarified that the payment was released to the National Pension Commssion (PenCom) in April 2017 for the payment of pension arrears for retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and not for the payment of 33 per cent arrears.
Late last year, PTAD revealed that the Directorate had paid another instalment of the 33 per cent pension arrears owed to its pensioners.
Under the said payment, the Directorate paid the police pensioners 12 months leaving a balance of 18 months, Civil service pensioners got six months leaving a balance of 12 months while parastatal pensioners got six months remaining a balance of 36 months.
The Directorate said in a statement that all pensioners under the Customs, Immigration and Prisons Pensions Department had already been paid the 33 per cent arrears in full since August 2016.
The statement indicated that the latest payment was made from the Service Wide Vote released last week by the Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF).
“PTAD will settle the outstanding arrears of the 33 per cent increment as soon as additional releases are made. Until then, the Directorate implores all its pensioners to be patient and continue to exercise vigilance against the activities of fraudsters and rabblerousers,” it stated.