The National President of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Godwin Abumisi, on Friday, 3 July, 2026 commended President Bola Tinubu for approving the payment of N39.6 billion being 10.6 per cent pension increase arrears owed to pensioners under the Defined Benefit Scheme.
Abumisi, who spoke in an interview with TVC News shortly after the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate and the Ministry of Finance announced the disbursement on Friday, 3 July, 2026, said the gesture, alongside other pension interventions by the Federal Government, had strengthened confidence in the administration’s commitment to the welfare of elderly citizens.
“We are very happy with the present government. No president in Nigeria has achieved as much as His Excellency, Bola Tinubu, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, GCFR. No other president has done as much as he has,” Abumisi said.
The pensioners’ leader listed other interventions he attributed to Tinubu, including N758 billion released for the arrears of pension and gratuity owed to contributory pensioners under the Contributory Pension Scheme, and N58 billion for the payment of pension arrears for those on the Defined Benefit Scheme.
“He has released funds to pay 10.6 per cent arrears of pension increase, amounting to N39.6 billion. He also made available the sum of N758 billion for arrears of pension and gratuity for PENCOM, for contributory pensioners.
“And he provided N58 billion for the payment of pension arrears for those on the Defined Benefit Scheme.
“So we are congratulating him, we are thanking him, and we are appreciating all that he is doing for pensioners in Nigeria. We are hopeful he will do even more for us,” he added.
Asked whether the development had reinforced pensioners’ confidence in the government, Abumisi said the administration had shown commitment to regular payment of monthly pensions since it came into office.
“This government is very much committed to the welfare of elderly citizens in Nigeria. We also know he has plans in place for the regular payment of monthly pensions,” he said.
He added that pensioners no longer experienced the delays that had previously characterised pension administration in the country.
“Since he took office, Nigerian pensioners and elderly citizens have been paid their pensions regularly. We no longer have the problems we used to have.
“So I thank him, on behalf of all pensioners in Nigeria, for what he has done, and we expect him to do even more,” he said.
Abumisi urged other pensioners to remain loyal to the government and to support the President’s re-election bid ahead of the 2027 general election.
“My advice is that we should be loyal to this government, because no other government has done as much as he has. We should support his bid to return to office and ensure he comes back in 2027,” he said.
The Federal Government had, on Friday, announced the payment of more than N39 billion in inherited pension liabilities owed to pensioners of the defunct Nigerian Telecommunications Limited, Mobile Telecommunications Limited, Power Holding Company of Nigeria, Assurance Bank, NICON and the defunct People’s Bank of Nigeria.
According to PTAD, the payments comprised N25.05 billion representing a 35-month pension liability owed to 9,675 eligible NITEL/MTEL pensioners, N9.48 billion representing the initial 50 per cent payment of Back End Computation arrears to 3,959 PHCN pensioners, and N5.09bn covering the balance of the 10.66 per cent and 12.95 per cent pension increment arrears due to 11,180 pensioners of Assurance Bank, NICON, NITEL and People’s Bank.
The directorate’s Executive Secretary, Tolulope Odunaiya, had described the payments as a demonstration of the government’s Renewed Hope Agenda, noting that presidential approval for the settlement was granted in August 2025, with funds later provided through the 2026 Appropriation Act.
Source: The Punch online
