Reprieve underway for pensioners as PITAD embarks on final verifications
Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD), a body responsible for pension administration of the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS), says it’s underway to end the sufferings of pensioners with its final verification exercise taking place across the country.
PTAD said this verification, which is the last that it’s pensioners will have to go through, will ensure that it secures accurate data of all pension beneficiaries to date.
Sharon Ikeazor, executive secretary of PTAD who spoke at the sideline of the 11-days pensioners’ verification exercise in Lagos said until we capture the last pensioner we will not stop the verification, but glad to say that this will be the last verification ever for civil service pensioners.”
“Once we have credible secured data base for pensioners, they will not need to come out for verification any longer”.
She said the challenge was that, PTAD was paying pensionioners that they were not sure of, and so in 2015 December discovered 15,600 accounts that have been receiving pensions without BVN.
She assured that after the current exercise, with all the documents available “we will do quality assurance, sit down and compute every pensioners benefit.”
PTAD handles defined benefit scheme for those who retired before 2007 anyone who retired before June 2007. Anyone who retired after June falls under the cps.
PTAD is here to resolve all pension administration issues. Ikeazor said the agency is verifying 250,000 pensioners, with Lagos having 21, 000 and after Lagos we move to Ondo, Ogun and Oyo, and those who missed it will come to our Abuja or Lagos offices.
“After the verification those whose names were removed before will after three months begin to receive while those receiving will continue to receive.”
On the 33 percent pension increase, unpaid gratuities and death benefits to deceased pensioners to next of kins, among others, she noted that the honorable minister of Finance has presented the ensuing liability to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) and has got the approval of FEC to raise bond and promissory notes to be able to clear the arrears.
According to her, the president has also set up an-inter ministerial committee on pension liabilities given the constraints in the economy, so is looking at ways of clearing the arrears, having paid substantial amount of the it.
Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) is responsible for the pension administration of the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS). PTAD was established to address the numerous pensioners’ complaints that bother on issues such as non-payment of monthly pension, short payment of pension and gratuity, removal of name on pension payment voucher, non-payment of harmonized pension arrears, and irregular payment of federal pensions and non receipt of pension after retirement, etc.
Empowered by Section 30, Sub Section (2a) of the Amended Pension Reform Act, 2004, and it will take over the management of three of the offices presently running the old pension scheme. These are the Civil Service Pension Department, the Police Pension Office and the Customs, Immigration and Prisons Pension Office (CIPPO).
Modestus Anaesoronye