By Okolo Ernest Chikezie
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The government of Nigeria is largely responsible for the high level of poverty among its citizens, especially civil servants.
Since 2026, President has made efforts to correct some of the obvious systemic issues affecting retired civil servants. Within the social structure, retired civil servants bear a significant portion of the country’s socio-economic burden.
Worse still, even as the President appears genuinely committed to improving the welfare of retired workers, many young people are forced to pay heavily—sometimes through unethical means—to secure the same jobs that left their parents and predecessors impoverished and struggling with health challenges. Unfortunately, this cycle only creates a new generation trapped in future poverty.
Meanwhile, certain agencies and individuals continue to undermine the genuine efforts of policymakers. For instance, the President approved a ₦32,000 wage award for retirees and made budgetary provisions to support its implementation. However, the execution of this policy has raised serious concerns, pointing to the roles of the Minister of Finance, the Director-General of the National Pension Commission, and Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs).
This raises critical questions: Why is the wage award still being paid separately from the monthly pension? Why the inconsistency in payments?
These concerns suggest either a lack of alignment with policy objectives or deeply rooted inefficiencies and misplaced priorities within the responsible institutions.
At the inception of the policy, a total of ₦544,000 was paid to retirees, covering 17 months up to October 2025. However, from November 2025 to April 2026—a period of six months—only one ₦32,000 payment has been made to some retirees, while many others have received nothing.
What happened to the remaining five months?
This gap clearly indicates that something has gone wrong somewhere. If this situation continues, retirees will remain victims of a system that fails to deliver on its promises. As the saying goes, when “Nigeria happens” to a situation, citizens are left with nothing but regret.
*Okolo Ernest Chikezie is a retired Federal Civil Servant.
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