FCTA approves N1.2bn to pay retirees 

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FCTA approves N1.2bn to pay retirees 

THE Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has approved the release of N1.28 billion for the payment of FCT retirees.

Director and chief executive officer of FCT Area Council Pension Board, Mr. Nanzing Nden, revealed this while speaking to journalists in Abuja.

The director stated that the money would be used to settle 234 retired officers of the area councils and the local education area teachers.

Nden, who said that the money approved was for those who had submitted their documents and had been processed for payment up to April 2019, added that to date, the board had received only 31 files that would be processed.

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He said: “I can recall that at the last briefing I said we were going to start an advanced payment to retirees from our system. So, as of now, we only have 31 files that have been sent to us from May to date for total liability of N138  million which is outstanding.”

The director, who said the board was planning to pay pensioners three months before their retirement, noted that the idea was to run away from the former system where people retired and stayed for years before getting  their benefits.

Mr. Nden also hinted that henceforth, the FCT Area councils pension board would be a reference point for other systems, urging that they work hard to meet the expectations of the pension retirement system.

He then enjoined the retirees to be a little patient and allow the account people do the necessary processing of the voucher and also allow it go through auditing before payment commences.

Nden explained that the payment was one of the approvals the board got from the former FCT Minister, Mallam Muhammad Musa Bello, before he left office, which the Permanent Secretary, Christian Chinyeaka Ohaa, followed up with a directive to the treasury for prompt payment.

He said: “Already, the FCT treasury is processing the payment, but the retirees will have to be patient to allow the accounts people do the necessary processing of the vouchers and so forth before payments are made.

“I can assure that within a reasonable time, the payments will be made, and the reason is that we are talking about over 200 files which we need to go through to ensure everything is done well.

“As at today, we only have 31 files that have been sent to us from May to date, with total liability of N138 million, which is outstanding. Apart from that, we don’t owe any retirement benefits of pensioners in the FCT.

“We are going to start an advanced payment system or payment in advance to those who are retiring from our system.”

“We receive an average of N300 million from the Area Councils and FCTA for management of pension, which is paid directly into our TSA account and managed by the FCT treasury. So, we have the financial capacity to meet our obligations.”

FCTA approves N1.2bn to pay retirees 
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