Kwara pensioners call for approval of minimum wage
By The Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Kwara State Chapter, has appealed to the state Government to approve the national minimum wage for pensioners in the state and 16 Local Government councils, to improve their well-being.
The union made the plea in a statement signed by the Chairman, Saidu Iladimeji and the Secretary, Samuel lbidoja.
According to the statement, several pensioners from the state and local government service, who still receive monthly pensions as low as N4,000 are finding it difficult to survive with their families, adding that the union was backing the current demand of N30,000 minimum wage by organized labour.
The union also expressed optimism that the N30,000 minimum wage, when approved and implemented, would no doubt have a positive effect on the lives of pensioners in the state.
The Union pointed out that the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria states that “pension shall be reviewed every five years or together with any Federal Civil Service salary reviews”.
The statement also stated that the last pension salary was reviewed in July 2010 in Kwara State, the situation it said brought untold hardship on several pensioners in the state, as the retirees from the 16 Local Government councils were living in abject poverty.
The union, therefore, appealed to Local Government Pensions Board to implement the 20 per cent salary increase harmonization of the year 2010 for affected pensioners, who retired from the 16 Local Government councils in the state.