by Deji Abiodun
The Nigeria Social insurance Trust Fund, NSITF, says it has been paying without fail pensions to its pensioners on a monthly basis
In a statement in Abuja, the Fund said it had never defaulted in the payment of pensions
Managing Director/Chief Executive of the NSITF, Umar Munir Abubakar, said the Fund pays a total of about N33 million monthly as pensions to its pensioners. He said what its pensioners are demanding for is the 33% increment proposed the National Union of Pensioners, NUP, to government in 2010.
According to him, pensioners of the Fund receive their payments before members of staff every month. He said pensioners of the Fund rank among the best treated in the country because of this policy
The Managing Director/Chief Executive said the picketing of the head office of the Fund recently by its pensioners was as a result of misinformation on how pensions and increments are managed.
Following this, he said there will be regular meetings between its in-house Pensioners Union and the Management of the Fund for exchange of information to avoid a recurrence of similar situation in the future
Meanwhile a joint committee of the Management of the Fund, NUP-NSITF branch and NUP National has been meeting to initiate the process for the implementation of the proposed 33% pension increment
The statement notes that no government institution has started the payment of the increment.
