Ogun moves to remove bureaucratic bottlenecks on pension payments

Going by the undue rigour which the senior citizens who had worked for the state for at least 35 years passed through during pension payments exercise, the Ogun State House of Assembly has directed Governor Ibikunle Amosun-led State Executive to immediately restore payment of monthly pensions to the Bureau of Local Government Pensions in the State.

Consequently, Ogun State House of Assembly has pledged to officially notify the Executive Arm of the Government on the need to immediately restore the payment of monthly pensions to the Bureau of Local Government Pensions for efficient service delivery to pensioners, adding that all efforts must be made to remove bureaucratic bottlenecks that impedes quick and accurate payments of pensions.

The Chairman, House Committee on Finance and Appropriation, Akanni Bankole who made this known at the Assembly Complex, when it played host to the Bureau of Local Government Pensions, said the house had earlier intervened on the issue of payment of monthly pensions that had been handed over to the office of the Accountant General.

he argued that the Bureau of Local Government Pensions has a statutory responsibility  to oversee the payment of pensions and should be allowed to continue to do so in order to restore the confidence of pensioners in the State as the concerned group might not approve collection of pensions from the Office of State Accountant-General.

Bankole noted that the welfare of pensioners, both at the State and Local Government levels remained paramount in the plans of the Senator Ibikunle Amosun led administration, urging the Bureau to be exercise patience as all anomaly noticed in recent times would soon be corrected.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Local Government Service Commission, Rotimi Rahmon has assured that the commission would in due time begin the distribution of staff to the newly created Local Council Development Areas.

He said,  ‘’The current Local Government law we are operating upon in the State as we speak still recognizes 20 local government and if we look at all the portions of the law, local council development areas is not even mentioned and it would be inappropriate for us as a commission to build something on nothing. That is why we are waiting for the authority involved to do what is necessary before the commission can embark upon the distribution of staff to the newly created local council development areas.”

RAZAQ AYINLA