- Lagos Pays N78.5bn Into Workers’ Retirement Savings Accounts
As part of efforts to ensure that workers earn their pensions when upon retirement, the Lagos State Government paid a total of N78.5bn into the Retirement Savings Accounts of its employees as of the end of March.
The Commissioner for Establishments, Training and Pensions, Dr. Akintola Oke, stated this during the state’s 38th retirement bond certificate presentation in Lagos on Friday.
“The Lagos State Government has never failed to remit monthly contributions into the Retirement Savings Accounts maintained by its workers with 10 Pension Fund Administrators,” he said.
Oke noted that 311 retirees would have their RSAs credited with accrued pension rights of N1.6bn, made up of gratuity and pension benefits under the Defined Benefits Scheme for employees who transited to the Defined Contributory Scheme during the bond presentation.
The Director-General, Lagos State Pension Commission, Mrs. Folashade Onanuga, said the state had paid N27.4bn to retirees less than two years.
“In a period of less than two years, from August 2015 to April 2017, the state government through LASPEC, has paid accrued pension rights in the sum of N27.4bn into the RSAs of 6,267 retirees. Accrued pension rights previously paid before the current administration amounts to N33.6bn to 7,409 retirees,” she stated.
Since the commencement of the retirement benefits bond certificate presentation in 2010, she said the state had paid about N61.4bn to over 13,676 retirees/withdrawn staff.
“In addition, the state government through the commission has paid to named beneficiaries of deceased employees insurance benefits of N12.5m for the month of April. This brings the total of death benefits to N182.5m from August 2015 to date,” Onanuga explained.
The LASPEC boss informed the retirees of the two exit options for receiving their monthly pensions, which are programmed withdrawal and annuity.
She enjoined all the beneficiaries to take good care of their health and physical well-being as well as desist from frivolous spending.
